Tragedy of the Ketchums
by Aprotny
Summary: When Ash's family gets murdered, he finds out that he's the next target. I do not own pokemon.
1. Chapter 1

Ash walked through Viridian City uneasily. He had been driven to go for a walk due to a bad feeling in his stomach. He felt like something really bad was about to happen to him.

"Help!" Somebody cried.

Ash stiffened. He knew that voice. It was his father's.

He ran. He tried to reach his father in time, he really did, but it was too late. He skidded around the bend just as a shot rang out and his father fell to the ground.

Ash stood for a moment, taking in what had just happened, as the murderers turned and saw him.

A bullet narrowly missed him as he began to run for his life.

**Three hours later…**

Iris and Cilan were stopped by Nurse Joy as they went to look for their friend.

"No going out. It's past Curfew." She told them.

"But our friend is still out there. He went for a walk and never came back." Cilan protested.

"No exceptions. You can look for him in the morning." Nurse Joy said strictly.

"Yes ma'am." Iris and Cilan chorused. They went back up to their room.

"I hope Ash is okay. He said he'd be back in a little bit, but he's been gone for three whole hours." Iris worried.

"I'm sure he's all right." Cilan assured her.

**Meanwhile…**

Ash finally stopped to catch his breath. He'd been running flat-out for hours on an adrenaline rush, but now he was exhausted. He looked up. The lights of Pallet Town sparkled nearby.

He felt a little guilty. He had accidentally left Iris and Cilan behind in Viridian City. He would have to call them in the morning to apologize.

He walked the rest of the way. There was a van parked in front of his house. Scared, he started running.

As he reached the porch steps, he heard a gunshot from inside. He flung the front door open and saw them. They had beaten him home. He trembled as he stared at his dead mother.

He turned and ran once more, his exhaustion slowing him down. Maybe he'd be safe at the Oak Corral with all his pokemon protecting him?

A bullet hit him in the shoulder. He hit the ground hard.

As his eyes closed, he caught sight of Pikachu coming to his rescue.

**Meanwhile…**

Tracey looked up from washing the dishes. Lightning lit up the cloudless sky not far from Professor Oak's lab.

"Professor Oak!" He called. "Something weird is going on!"

The professor thudded down the stairs. "What is it?" Tracey pointed wordlessly at the lightning. "I see… I'll go check it out. It's obviously a pokemon. Stay here."

He ran to the scene of the crime, but wasn't seen because the criminals were distracted by Pikachu. He put Ash's head in his lap and whipped out his pokegear.

The police and paramedics arrived instantaneously. The murderers were pushed into a police car and taken to the police station to await trial.

Ash was put in an ambulance to be taken to a hospital so that his wound could be treated more thoroughly. Professor Oak and Pikachu went with Ash.

Tracey was outside with, to Professor Oak's surprise, Misty when the ambulance passed by. They both look worried. Professor Oak made a mental note to call them later.

**An hour later…**

"It's Professor Oak." Tracey told Misty, picking up the phone. "Professor Oak? Are you okay? We saw that ambulance go by and got worried."

"I'm aware. Let's just say, it's a good thing you saw that lightning. I found Ash at the scene. He was hurt, but not _too_ badly. Can you go tell his mother to come here? You and Misty can come too. Thanks. Bye." Professor Oak made the conversation brief.

Tracey was in too much shock to answer. The phone buzzed, signaling that the other person had hung up.

"Tracey? What did he say? What's wrong?" Misty asked.

"It… it was Ash in that ambulance. Professor Oak said he… wasn't hurt too bad. I… I don't believe that. He wants us to tell… tell Mrs. Ketchum. That won't be… won't be fun." Tracey stammered.

Misty turned pale. "Ash… is…"

"Let's go!" Tracey interrupted. "The sooner we get done telling his mom, the better."

They walked down to the Ketchums' house together. The door was wide open. Both kids screamed at what they saw inside.

**The next day…**

"I just received notice from my cousin in Pallet Town." Officer Jenny told Iris and Cilan. "Your friend is in the hospital there."

"In the hospital?" Iris choked. Cilan just gaped at the officer.

"I'm afraid so. Poor kid. Anyway, Pallet Town is of here. Now hurry along. I have issues to deal with." Officer Jenny shooed them away.

Outside, Iris turned to Cilan.

"I say we get there pronto." She said. Cilan just nodded. They hurried off.

**Meanwhile…**

"Thanks for helping me with my chores, Misty." Tracey commented.

"No problem. This way, we can go see Ash sooner." Misty replied.

Tracey stopped what he was doing for a minute. "How do you think he'll react when he hears his mother is dead? Professor Oak freaked out about it."

Misty stopped as well. "I think he'll be upset, and he won't get over it for a while. After all, he loved her very much."

They both went back to work. The pokemon felt their nervousness, which made things all that much harder.

Finally, the chores were done, and Misty and Tracey went to the hospital to visit Ash.

Professor Oak met them in the lobby and brought them up to Ash's hospital room.

Ash moaned in his sleep.

"The doctor said all his body energy has been used up somehow and the injury made things worse." Professor Oak explained. "He won't be waking up for a while."

"Pika…" Pikachu's ears drooped. He was sad that he hadn't been able to protect his trainer.

"Pikachu, you did everything you could. It was thanks to your lightning that Professor Oak went out to investigate and found Ash. You basically saved his life." Tracey assured him, petting him on the head.

"Pika…" Pikachu jumped on the bed and cuddled up against Ash, hoping to comfort him by being there. Tracey gently took Ash's arms and positioned them so that they were holding Pikachu.

"He looks so peaceful." Misty whispered. "So… innocent."

"Well, he is innocent. He never did anything to deserve this." Professor Oak responded.

"Yeah…" Tracey muttered.

"Mommy… Daddy…" Ash mumbled.

Professor Oak, Tracey, and Misty sat down. They would be there a while and there was no need to stand the whole time.

"Let's just hope it's not worse than we think." Professor Oak murmured.

**Two days later…**

"Look! That must be Pallet Town!" Cilan called to Iris.

"Finally! Let's hurry up and find Ash!" Iris called back. She then caught up to Cilan and they headed down into the town together.

"Strange. Why is everyone wearing black?" Cilan whispered to his friend. "Did someone die?"

"To quite an extent. The whole Ketchum family was murdered a couple of nights ago." A man said, stopping them short. "Everyone is mourning them."

"Did you say the _Ketchum_ family?" Iris stammered. "Oh no… Ash…"

"Rumor has it that the youngest member of the family survived with a shot wound and a coma. The police are supposedly watching him twenty-four seven." The man continued. "There are only three people allowed past: the Cerulean City gym leader, Professor Oak, and Professor Oak's assistant. There's no guarantee any of this is true though. They're only rumors."

"Thank you for telling us, sir. We appreciate it." Cilan told him. "Come on, Iris." Cilan led Iris to a small corner where they could talk privately.

"Maybe we can get past security if we find one of those three people. If we can get past security, we might be able to find out more." Iris suggested.

"Good idea." Cilan responded. "Let's start looking."

**An hour later…**

Tracey hurried towards the Oak Corral. He was late in feeding the pokemon. He had to hurry.

Suddenly, somebody stepped in his path. He screeched to a stop. He took a step to the left, attempting to go around the person, but the person stepped back into his path and pulled out a gun.

Tracey froze. "Help!" He shouted.

"Yell one more time and I shoot." The person threatened.

Tracey gulped. What now? He started to back up. He bumped right into another person, who grabbed him by the arms and pricked him with something.

The first person quietly told Tracey to turn around and start walking. Tracey did. A van came into view after a couple of minutes. Two more people, a boy and a girl, were standing by the van. For some reason, they looked younger than Tracey.

"Get out of our way." The second person ordered.

The boy threw a pokeball. "Go! Pansage! Use Bullet Seed!"

A pokemon jumped out of the girl's hair. "Fraxure! Use Dragon Rage!"

Tracey braced himself for the attack, but it hit his captors instead. The girl grabbed his wrist.

"Come on!" She yelled.

Not really sure what was going on, but feeling he could trust them, Tracey followed the girl and the boy as they tried and succeeded in outrunning the criminals who had been trying to kidnap him.

"Thank you for saving me. I'm Tracey. May I ask your names?" Tracey said.

"I'm Cilan and this is Iris. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The boy, Cilan, answered.

"It's nice to meet you." The girl, Iris, responded. "We heard your cry for help, so we tried our best."

"Thanks for that. Come with me to Professor Oak's lab. We can talk more after I feed the pokemon." Tracey offered.

**An hour later...**

"So you're trying to find out more about what happened to the Ketchums?" Tracey asked.

"That's right. We're worried our friend Ash is… you know…" Iris paused. "So can you help us?"

"Ash is still alive, but he's badly wounded. It's thanks to Pikachu we found him in time. We suspect Ash might already know his mother is dead. We don't know if he knows about anyone else in his family, though." Tracey told her and Cilan. "The group that hurt Ash was caught, but we suspect they weren't the only ones participating in the operation. There's no way that one group could have killed the whole family in one night. I still have to wonder why. Why did they murder them? Wasn't there another way?"

"Maybe it was for revenge. It's possible that the group was angry at one member of the family and decided to kill all of them." Cilan suggested.

Suddenly, Tracey fainted.

"Tracey!" Iris screamed. "Cilan! Call 911!"

The paramedics got there in the blink of an eye and loaded Tracey into an ambulance. Iris and Cilan begged to be allowed to come as well.

"Go alert Professor Oak." One of the paramedics told a nurse when they got to the hospital. The nurse hurried away.

Iris and Cilan followed the paramedics until they were allowed no further. They were worried sick about their new friend.

After a few minutes, Professor Oak came running. A doctor stepped out of the room they'd taken Tracey into.

"Somebody injected a harmful chemical into him." He explained. "The child will be all right, but he's fallen into a coma."

Iris and Cilan looked at each other, knowing who had done it.

"Oh no… What do I do now?" Professor Oak groaned. "Poor Tracey."

"I suggest you call his parents and let them know." The doctor said.

Professor Oak nodded, his mind turning back to the Ketchum tragedy.

**Meanwhile…**

As Misty watched, she was sure she saw Ash stir a little. She leaned forward.

Ash moaned, but didn't wake up.

Misty was disappointed. She had been sure he was going to wake up that time.

There was the sudden sound of breaking glass. Someone had broken through the window. More people followed.

They barricaded the door quickly and grabbed Misty, who screamed, and Ash. They shoved Pikachu into a rubber cage before he could thunderbolt anyone. Misty's Azurill went in a cage as well.

Out through the window and down to a van they went. As the kidnappers drove away, their colleagues tied up Ash and Misty (although Ash didn't really need tying up).

They were prisoners.

_To be continued…_


	2. Chapter 2

The rest of the day and the night passed quickly. Misty was sure the police knew they were missing by now. Finally, they arrived at an abandoned building in the middle of nowhere.

Misty was shoved out of the van and down the halls. Ash was carried the whole way, seeing that he was unconscious. They were taken into a large room where a man stood with his back to them.

"Boss, we brought the boy, along with a girl who was in the room with him." One of their captors announced.

The man didn't turn around. "Lock them up separately. I don't want them to put their heads together and figure out a way to escape."

"Yes sir." All of their captors said in unison.

"No!" Misty's scream was muffled by the cloth covering her mouth. She tried to grab her friend, but couldn't because of the ropes around her arms. She was dragged in the complete opposite direction of where they took Ash. She was helpless.

**Meanwhile…**

"It's confirmed. Misty and Ash are nowhere near Pallet Town." Officer Jenny told Professor Oak. "We tracked Misty's pokegear signal like you suggested. They've been taken somewhere far away from here. I contacted the Officer Jenny closest to them and she'll take care of this. All we can really do is wait."

"There must be something else we can do! We can't just stand here and do nothing while they're in trouble!" Professor Oak responded.

"You should remember that Ash and Misty aren't the only ones that need you right now." Officer Jenny replied. "Your assistant needs you as well."

Professor Oak looked over at Tracey, who still hadn't woken up, guiltily. "You're right. I guess I should let the police handle it for now."

"We want to help rescue them." Iris stated. "Ash is our friend, and we'll do anything we can for him."

"For now, leave it to us." Officer Jenny told her and Cilan. "Understood?"

"Yes ma'am." They understood, but they weren't happy about it.

**That night…**

Misty heard a sound outside her cell.

"Who's there?" She whispered, hoping it wasn't another bug-type pokemon. There were plenty of them in her cell.

The door opened. A light, probably belonging to a flashlight, swept over Misty.

"Come on out. You're free." A very familiar voice hissed.

"Officer Jenny? Help me find my friend Ash." Misty whispered.

"Okay, but come out before someone pushes us all in." Officer Jenny answered.

Misty cautiously exited the cell. "Ash is wounded and in a coma. We have to find him fast."

"You heard her, team. Look for a locked up kid that's wounded and in a coma." Officer Jenny ordered. "Split up into pairs and head out. Misty, you come with me."

Misty and Officer Jenny started searching, being as quiet as possible.

"Pikachu!" A small voice called.

"Azurill!" Another small voice put in.

"It's Pikachu and Azurill! Let's go free them!" Misty suggested, keeping her voice low.

She and Officer Jenny hurried into the room where Pikachu and Azurill were being kept to find themselves confronted by armed guards. One of the guards hit the alarm which blared throughout the building.

"Pika!" Pikachu cried.

"Azu!" Azurill added, trying to get to Misty. The cage edged towards the edge of the table and then fell off it. After a moment, it smashed into pieces on the floor.

"Azurill!" Suddenly, Misty didn't care about the armed guards or the situation she was in. All she cared about was making sure Azurill was okay.

A guard reached toward Misty. Azurill blasted him with Water Gun, proving it was fine.

While Misty and Azurill fought off the guards, Officer Jenny freed all the other pokemon in the room.

"Pikachu! Lead us to Ash!" Misty yelled over the alarm, which was still ringing out over all of that racket.

"Pika!" Pikachu agreed and took off. He led them through several halls and out of the building. A couple of other police officers had found Ash first and taken him outside.

"Ash!" Misty cried, running to her friend. "Please be okay."

"We're going to take him to the hospital in Cerulean City. That one is the closest." One of the officers reported. "It won't take long to get him there."

"I'll come with you." Misty said. "I'm not going to leave him."

The officer nodded. "Okay."

**Two hours later…**

"So you're in Cerulean City?" Professor Oak asked Misty over the phone.

"Yes." Misty answered. "I'm glad the police found us so quickly. I have no clue what those people had in store for us. My sisters came over in a hurry. They were worried about me. I don't want to leave Ash's side, but I've got three challengers at my gym. Daisy promised to watch over him until I get back."

"I understand, Misty, but get back to him as soon as you can. Let me know immediately if something bad happens. Goodbye." Professor Oak hung up the phone and headed back to Tracey's hospital room. Iris and Cilan looked up expectantly when he arrived. "They're in Cerulean City. Misty has to deal with challengers and I have to stay with Tracey. Do you think you two could head to Cerulean City and stay with Ash?"

Iris and Cilan glanced at Tracey then at each other. They reached a silent agreement.

"I'll head to Cerulean City and Cilan will stay here with Tracey. It works out in everyone's favor." Iris proclaimed. Cilan nodded.

"Okay then. That's what we'll do." Professor Oak said.

**Two months later…**

Tracey wakes up.

**Four months after that…**

Ash moaned and stirred. He came to with a start.

"Mom! Dad!" He cried, sitting up and grabbing everyone's attention.

"He's awake!" Misty gasped happily.

"And now we have to tell him…" Iris whispered, snapping Misty back to reality.

Ash was trembling, knowing what was coming.

"Ash, your whole family… they're… gone…" Misty stammered.

"My… my _whole_ family?" Ash hadn't realized it was _that_ bad. Tears slid down his face. "It can't be…"

"We're really sorry, Ash. We know how much your family must've meant to you." Iris said.

Ash was full-out crying now. He cried for hours, Misty, Iris, and Pikachu trying repeatedly to comfort him. Doctors came in and out, checking up on him. He didn't even notice until one gave him a shot.

"What was that for?"He asked.

"It's to help you recover." The doctor replied and left.

Pikachu wiped Ash's tears away with his tail and cuddled up against him. Ash picked him up and hugged him.

"At… at least I… still have… you… Pikachu…" He sobbed.

"Look at the bright side, Ash." Iris urged him. "At least _you're_ still alive."

Ash looked at her, and then nodded slowly. "I… I guess you're right… I… I got lucky…"

"Iris is right, Ash. You can still grow up and fulfill your dreams. You can still make them proud." Misty said.

"Does Brock know?" Ash questioned, surprising them both.

"Um… I don't recall mentioning it to him the last time we talked… and he didn't ask… so… I guess not…" Misty stammered. Ash looked disappointed. "But I think he's visiting his family this weekend! We can tell him then!" Misty added quickly. "We can bring him here to see you!"

"Okay." Ash looked like he felt a little better with that promise. "How soon is the weekend?"

"Tomorrow." Iris told him. "It's tomorrow."

"I hadn't realized it was so soon!" Misty almost laughed, but stopped herself in time. This wasn't the time and place to start laughing.

**The next day…**

"Ash! Are you okay?" Brock rushed into the room, looking out of breath.

"I'll be fine." Ash answered. "Still taking it in, but…"

Brock sat down in a chair by Ash's hospital bed. "I'm glad you're all right."

"I'm not _all right_." Ash started crying all over again. "I'm an orphan, for heaven's sake."

Brock held him close. "Shh. Don't think like that. You've still got friends and pokemon, and Professor Oak is going to take care of you. If you ever need anything, you know where to reach me."

"What'll I do now, Brock?" Ash sobbed. "I don't know what to do."

"Do what you've been doing since you were ten. Follow your dreams." Brock murmured in his ear. "That's the best path to take now. It would make your parents happy to know that, even after they died, you'd still become what you've always wanted to be."

Ash stopped crying for a second. "Do you really think so?"

"I really do." Brock smiled. "Dry your tears and let's play a game, okay?"

Ash nodded. "Okay."

Days passed and Ash moved in with Professor Oak. The only condition was that he helped Tracey with some of the chores.

One day, they were out in the corral when Tracey struck up a conversation.

"I heard a rumor the other day that the whole group of criminals that did you-know-what was caught." He began. "They've all been sentenced to life in jail or… um… you know. It's a rumor, but I hope it's true."

Ash made a face. "I agree. They'd better be in jail, those murderers."

"I heard another rumor, too, but I don't want to tell it to you. We'll see what happens." Tracey continued.

Bulbasaur tapped Ash on the shoulder with his vine whip, and then moved to stay behind him when he turned around. Tracey put a hand over his mouth to try to muffle his laughter as it happened several times before Bayleef picked up Bulbasaur so that Ash could see who the culprit was.

"So what's this other rumor?" Ash asked. "You can't keep it from me now that you've mentioned it."

"I told you. We'll see what happens." Tracey responded. "I'm not going to tell you what it is, just that you'll pray it's true."

"Tell me!" Ash begged.

"No!" Tracey replied sternly.

**The next day…**

Ash sat in his room, wondering what Tracey had meant when he had said there was a rumor Ash would pray was true.

"Ash!" Professor Oak called. "Come down here for a moment! I want to talk to you!"

Ash thudded down the stairs. "Yes?"

"I'm going to a conference meeting in Hoenn. You and Tracey are in charge of the pokemon and the lab while I'm gone. Since Tracey's older, he's in charge of you as well." Professor Oak told him.

"What? No fair!" Ash complained. "I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself!"

"Sorry, Ash. Life's not fair." Professor Oak responded. "Well, I'm off."

"Bye, Professor Oak." Tracey said. Ash hadn't noticed him behind him.

"It's not fair." Ash fumed.

"Hey. At least you don't have to cook for the both of us. What do you want for dinner?" Tracey asked.

"Um… cheeseburger?" Ash replied.

"Okay. I'll call you when it's ready." Tracey said.

Ash went outside, no longer angry. Some of his pokemon came up to greet him. For some reason, they looked worried.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked "Is something wrong?"

Suddenly, someone grabbed him from behind, covering his mouth.

"Shh! It's just me! I saw someone outside with a gun! Come back in!" Tracey hissed in his ear.

A shot rang out and Tracey crumbled.

"Tracey!" Ash screamed. He ran inside and began to dial 911, but a bullet hit the phone and it blew up. "Help!"

He raced out of the house and down the hill. Suddenly, there was a giant explosion behind him. He turned around to see Professor Oak's lab go up in flame. Ash shook his head to clear it. The most important thing right now wasn't the lab, it was Tracey.

He ran and ran until he reached the hospital where he told them Tracey was hurt and he couldn't use the phone. He didn't say _why_ he couldn't use the phone, just that he couldn't.

After that, he ran into town, hoping the killer wouldn't find him. It was a hopeless hope. They found him almost instantaneously and chased him into the woods.

Ash ran straight into a Pidgeot.

"End of the line, kid. You've got nowhere to run." The killer snickered.

Ash backed up, hitting the Pidgeot again.

A moment later, he found himself on the Pidgeot's back, dodging the killer's bullets. The killer climbed onto a Fearow's back and chased them through the sky.

It was then that Ash recognized the Pidgeot he was riding. It was the same Pidgeot he had released into the wild years before!

"Pidgeot, thank you." He whispered. "Thank you for saving me."

Pidgeot squawked in a way that said 'this isn't over yet' and dodged more bullets. Ash held on tight.

The chase went on for hours, until the bird-types were exhausted. Pidgeot held out longer and brought Ash away from the killer.

They were near Pewter City by then. Flint, Brock's father, saw them coming. He and Ash took Pidgeot to the pokemon center, where the worn out bird-type was cared for.

"Why did you push Pidgeot so hard?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Will it be okay?" Ash replied.

"It'll be fine, but you didn't answer my question." Nurse Joy responded. "You should take better care of your pokemon."

Ash hung his head, knowing he'd had no choice, but feeling bad for it anyways.

"We'll have Pidgeot stay here overnight and then you can come back for it in the morning. If you want, we can prepare a room for you upstairs." Nurse Joy offered.

"No need. I'd prefer it if he stayed at my place for the night." Flint said.

"Okay. How's that with you?" Nurse Joy turned to Ash.

Ash shrugged. "As long as I'm not stuck in the woods, I'm fine."

He followed Flint home. As soon as they got inside, Flint turned to him.

"So, Ash, what happened?" Flint questioned.

"Well, it's a long story." Ash said nervously, and explained what had happened.

"Sounds like you've had a long night. You can stay in one of our guest bedrooms for the night. Sleep as long as you'd like." Flint told him.

Ash nodded. "Okay."

_To be continued…_


	3. Chapter 3

Ash lay in bed in a guest bedroom at Brock's house. He couldn't sleep. He worried repeatedly about Tracey and Pidgeot, and prayed the killer wouldn't find him. Then, he realized that he had left Pikachu in Pallet Town.

He wondered when it would all end and when things would be back to normal. He knew the answer to the second question was never. Things would never be back to normal. He'd lost too much.

"Pikachu, I need you." He whispered in the dark. "You're all I have left."

**The next morning…**

"Hello, Ash. Did you sleep well?" Flint asked as Ash came into the kitchen.

"I didn't sleep a wink. I was too scared and worried." Ash replied.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that. I have some good news for you. Officer Jenny arrested a man with a gun and Fearow this morning for trying to shoot his way into the pokemon center." Flint told him.

Ash was horrified. "Was anyone hurt?"

Flint shook his head. "No, nobody was hurt. It seemed the man didn't find who he was looking for."

Ash's horror turned to relief. "Thank goodness!"

"Come on." Flint said. "Let's go check on your Pidgeot."

They walked together to the pokemon center.

"Good morning!" Nurse Joy greeted them. "Your Pidgeot is doing fine. All it needed was a good night's sleep to recover.""

"That's a relief." Ash smiled. "We can go home now."

"You'll have to walk. I don't want Pidgeot flying today." Nurse Joy told him sternly.

Ash nodded. "Okay. Fine with me."

**The next day…**

There was a ringing noise from Ash's pocket. He had completely forgotten about the pokegear Professor Oak had given him for his birthday.

"Hello?" He answered.

"Ash! Thank goodness you're all right! I was so worried!" Professor Oak exclaimed. "Where are you?"

"Halfway to Viridian City. You?" Ash responded.

"So you're close. Good. Can you come back to Pallet Town?" Professor Oak replied.

"Um… The _other_ side of Viridian City." Ash said.

"How'd you get that far?" Professor Oak asked. "Anyway…"

"Is Tracey okay? Please tell me Tracey's okay!" Ash interrupted.

"Tracey will be fine. The bullet hit him in the right hip so he might be in a wheelchair for a while, but he'll survive." Professor Oak told him.

"What a relief. I'll be back as soon as I can. Is Pikachu with you?" Ash questioned.

"Yes, Pikachu's with me. He's worried about you." Professor Oak responded.

"Great. Take care of him until I get back. Bye." Ash hung up the pokegear. "Pidgeot? Are you ready?"

Pidgeot shook its feathers and then leaned down so that Ash could get on.

"Great. Let's go."

**Meanwhile…**

Professor Oak sighed. He was still worried about Ash. Ash was out there all alone with no pokemon with him. What would happen if something attacked him? He'd have no way to defend himself.

He walked back into Tracey's hospital room, and sat down.

"Is Ash all right?" Tracey asked. "I was supposed to take care of him, but I didn't do a very good job of it. I tried to get him back inside before that man saw him, but I wasn't quick enough."

"It's okay, Tracey. Don't blame yourself. You did everything you could." Professor Oak assured him. "If I'd known something like this was going to happen, I wouldn't have left the two of you home alone."

"Is he okay?" Tracey repeated.

"He seemed fine when he answered his pokegear." Professor Oak replied.

"That's good." Tracey relaxed on his pillows and closed his eyes. Soon he was fast asleep.

**Three hours later…**

Pidgeot landed just outside Pallet Town. Ash slid off its back.

"Thank you for helping me, Pidgeot." He said. "You really saved me back there."

"Pidgeot!" Pidgeot cried. "Pidgeot!"

"I'll be okay from here on out. I really appreciate what you've done for me." Ash hugged Pidgeot's neck. After a moment, he released and said goodbye. Then, he turned and walked away.

He saw Pidgeot fly off out of the corner of his eye.

"Take care, Pidgeot." He whispered.

**A few days later…**

"Ash! It's dinner time!" Professor Oak called up the stairs.

Ash took his time descending. It was Tracey's first night back from the hospital and Ash wasn't looking forward to seeing him in a wheelchair.

"Ash! Hurry up!" Professor Oak yelled.

They were staying in the house that Ash's family used to live in until the lab was rebuilt. Ash wasn't happy about it. It had been uninhabited for over half a year and it showed. The blood stains on the floor made things worse.

Ash wandered into the kitchen. Seeing Tracey made his stomach churn.

"I'm not that hungry anymore." Ash murmured.

"Oh no you don't. You haven't eaten in days. You will eat this food even if I have to force it down your throat." Professor Oak scolded.

Not enjoying the thought of Professor Oak shoving food down his throat, Ash sat down at the table. He wasn't surprised at how hungry he became when he took his first bite of food, but he still ate slowly and not much.

"You have to eat everything on your plate." Professor Oak told him, a small smile on his face.

Ash looked down. His plate had been refilled somehow. He groaned. He finished the food anyways.

This time, he caught the food culprit. "Pikachu! Stop putting food on my plate!"

"Pika?" Pikachu put on a cute, innocent face.

Tracey and Professor Oak laughed.

"You still have to eat it, Ash." Professor Oak said.

"Oh come on!" Ash responded. "I'll get you for this, Pikachu."

**The next morning…**

Ash sat in the garden, thinking of his lost mother and crying over her.

"I'm sorry we have to stay here, Ash." Ash looked up to find Tracey above him. "I know how much you wanted to avoid this place."

Ash didn't answer. He didn't want to tell Tracey how he was feeling.

"Hey. I'm sure there's a bright side to all this." Tracey attempted.

"What is it then? What's the bright side?" Ash sobbed.

"That's for you to decide. I can't tell you what the bright side is or even if there is one. It's all up to you." Tracey murmured. He wheeled himself away.

Ash thought about what had just been said. Was it really up to him to decide whether or not there was a bright side?

Professor Oak came outside. "Ash?"

Ash looked away.

"Ash, are you okay?"Professor Oak asked. "I know you're upset, but it'll be all right."

Ash put a hand on his shoulder. It still hurt sometimes, a constant reminder of what he had lost.

Professor Oak sat down next to him and put an arm around him.

"I miss her. I miss all of them." Ash whispered. "But I especially miss her."

"I know, Ash. I miss her too." Professor Oak told him. "I know it's hard for you, but remember, you're not the only one who mourns them, and you're not the only one who has lost their family. There are other people out there too, people who have no one. At least you have me and Pikachu and all your friends."

"But I need _her_." Ash murmured.

"I know, Ash. I know." Professor Oak pulled the crying boy into a hug. "Things will get better. I promise."

**Meanwhile…**

In Viridian City, a man begins to stir. He opens his eyes. How did he get into the hospital? The last thing he remembers: seeing a somewhat familiar boy try to escape murderers. Who was the boy? He'd only gotten a short glimpse of him. One question fills his mind: Did the boy get away? Or was he laying dead somewhere, his family mourning him?

The man struggles into a sitting position. A doctor turns to look at him. The man stays still as the doctor checks him over.

"How are you feeling?" The doctor asks.

"I hurt around my rib cage." The man answers.

The doctor nods. "That's where you got hit. I have no doubt you hurt there. You'll feel better soon."

The man stares at the doctor. "Is he all right?"

"Who?" The doctor asks, confused.

"I saw a boy run from the killers. Is he all right?" The man repeats.

"I don't know of a boy getting hurt in Viridian City that same night as you, so I suppose he's okay." The doctor replies.

"Good." The man says, and closes his eyes. "Good."

**The next morning…**

"Ash, I brought you breakfast in bed." Tracey woke Ash up gently. "Pancakes and eggs."

Ash's eyelids fluttered open. He blinked twice and sat up. Tracey gave him the food.

"So Professor Oak is going to Alto Mare for a conference meeting and he wants us both to come with him." Tracey announced. "It would be a nice relief from all the chaos here. The neighbors are going to take care of the pokemon while we're gone."

"Alto Mare?" Ash asked, remembering his last trip to Alto Mare.

"Yeah, and there's this race called the 'Tour de Alto Mare' soon, so bring a water pokemon." Tracey added.

"Okay." Ash said, looking forward to seeing Latias, Lorenzo, and Bianca again.

"We're leaving tomorrow, so pack today." Tracey told him.

"Th… that soon?" Ash stammered.

"Yep. Professor Oak was contacted about the meeting on short notice." Tracey responded. "Come on. Get up sleepy head. Go pack."

**The next day…**

"I'm glad this town is so peaceful, seeing all the trouble we've been through lately." Professor Oak said as they arrived in Alto Mare.

"Yeah… Listen, I have to go get something. I'll see you guys at the hotel." Ash said.

"Pika!" Pikachu was excited, knowing where Ash was going.

Ash hurried through town until he got to Lorenzo's workshop.

"Hello? Anybody here?" He called.

"Pika Pika!" Pikachu put in.

Suddenly, Ash found himself wrapped in a familiar girl's hug.

"Bianca or Latias?" He asked her. The girl giggled silently, meaning she was Latias.

"Oh, hello Ash. It's nice to see you again." Bianca came out of the workshop. "I was wondering why Latias ran off all of a sudden." Latias pointed to some bushes. "What is it, Latias?"

"Pi-ka-chu!" Pikachu thunderbolted the bushes and Tracey weakly wheeled himself out.

"What was that for?" He stammered.

"Sorry, Tracey!" Ash said. "You shouldn't have been spying on us!"

"Professor Oak asked me to. After all that's happened recently, he doesn't want you out here alone." Tracey replied.

"Why don't you both come in? We can talk inside." Bianca offered. Latias nodded excitedly.

"Okay." Ash answered. "Come on, Tracey."

They all went inside.

"So what's happened recently that's so bad that someone like Professor Oak has demanded you not be alone?" Bianca asked.

"I don't want to talk about it." Ash mumbled. Latias put on a puppy dog face. "That will not work on me, Latias."

"Isn't Latias the name of a legendary pokemon?" Tracey asked.

"Long story." Bianca and Ash replied in unison. Latias giggled silently.

"Bianca! I'm back from the market!" Lorenzo called. "What do you want for dinner?"

"Grandpa! Guess who came for a visit?" Bianca called back.

Lorenzo came into a room. "Hello, Ash. Long time no see. Who's your friend?"

"This is Tracey." Ash responded. "Tracey, this is Lorenzo and I forgot to introduce you to Bianca and Latias before we started talking."

"It's nice to meet you." Tracey said.

"I guess it's not in my place to ask, but why are you in a wheelchair?" Bianca asked.

"Bianca! That might be personal!" Lorenzo scolded.

"I'd rather not answer that question." Tracey said. "Let's just say… I got in the way…"

"Would you like to stay for dinner?" Lorenzo asked. "There's plenty of food to go around."

"Professor Oak won't be out of his meeting in time for dinner, so I don't see why not." Tracey answered.

"You know Professor Oak?" Lorenzo looked surprised.

"Tracey is Professor Oak's assistant and I've lived down the street from him since I was a baby." Ash answered. "So, yes, we know him."

"Wow. That's cool!" Bianca exclaimed. "I never knew!"

**An hour later…**

"So, Ash, how's life been treating you?" Bianca asked at the dinner table.

"Pretty good. I've participated in the Johto Silver Conference, the Hoenn League, the Battle Frontier, the Sinnoh League, and the Unova League since I last saw you." Ash answered.

"Right… Just telling them the good side…" Tracey murmured. Ash kicked him under the table.

"Wow, you've been in a lot of Pokemon Leagues!" Bianca exclaimed, pretending not to have heard him.

Ash pushed away thoughts of his family cheering him on and asked. "So what've you been up to?"

"You know, painting and drawing. Grandpa's been making boats. Same old, same old." Bianca replied. "Anything else?"

"Been in a few contests here or there. That's about it." Ash said.

"What about you, Tracey?" Bianca turned to Tracey.

"I've been helping out around Professor Oak lab. That's what I've been doing for a while now." Tracey answered.

"Cool! You're so lucky!" Bianca said.

"We can introduce you, if you'd like." Ash offered.

"Really? Grandpa, can I go? Please?" Bianca begged.

"All right with me. Take Latias with you." Lorenzo answered.

"Yay! I get to meet Professor Oak!" Bianca exclaimed.

**An hour later…**

_"This is where I promised we'd meet Professor Oak." Tracey explained to Ash, Latias, and Bianca._

_"Right on time." Professor Oak said, surprising them all when he stepped out of the shadows. "I thought you'd be late. Who are your friends?"_

_"This is Bianca and…" Ash paused, not sure how to introduce Latias._

_"Hi! I'm Bianca and this is my twin sister, Sabrina." Bianca said, to Ash's relief. Latias, however, wasn't pleased and shot an 'I'll get you back later' glare at Bianca._

_"It's nice to meet you, Bianca and Sabrina. I'm Professor Oak." Professor Oak shook Bianca's hand but Latias withdrew uneasily._

_"Can I get your autograph?" Bianca asked. "I'm a big fan."_

_"Sure thing." Professor Oak replied, while Ash and Tracey sweatdropped in the background._

_"Thank you!" Bianca said, after she got her autograph. "See you tomorrow, Ash! Remember, you promised to come and play with Sabrina!"_

_She ran home, Latias/Sabrina right behind her._

_"Did you just meet them today?" Professor Oak asked Ash and Tracey._

_"I did, but Ash seemed to have already met them some time ago." Tracey answered._

_"Oh, so you've been here before, Ash?" Professor Oak questioned._

_Ash nodded. "With Brock and Misty."_

_"Well, let's head back to the hotel for a shower and a good night's sleep." Professor Oak suggested._

_"Okay!" Both boys responded._

_**Later that night…**_

_Ash was shaken awake by frantic hands._

_"Okay! Okay! I'm awake!" He hissed. "Bianca? How'd you get up here?" Remembering his last trip to Alto Mare, he added. "Or are you Latias? What's wrong?"_

_"Ash, go back to sleep." Tracey moaned._

_"Tracey! It's Latias! Wake up!" Ash whispered._

_Tracey opened his eyes. "Holy crap! How did she get in here?" _

_Latias pointed to the open window._

_"Let me get this straight. You climbed eight stories and came in through the window?" Tracey asked._

_"Let's go with that." Ash said. "What's wrong?" Latias dragged him towards the window. "Um… I'd rather use the elevator." _

_The two boys grabbed room keys and left the room, taking the elevator to get to the bottom floor. Then, Latias led them to Bianca's house._

_Lorenzo was outside. "Bianca, is that you?" Latias shook her head and pointed to Ash and Tracey. "Oh, Latias, you brought help."_

_"What's going on?" Ash asked._

_"Bianca is missing." Lorenzo told them. Ash and Tracey gasped._

_"We've got to find her!" Tracey said. "Let's split up! Ash and Latias will go that way and you and me will go this way, okay?"_

_"Right! Come on, Latias!" Ash responded and both groups set off._

_**The next morning…**_

_"We searched all night, but we couldn't find her." Ash yawned._

_"We've got to keep looking!" Lorenzo exclaimed._

_"Professor Oak is probably worried sick about us. We've got to…" Tracey began. Ash's pokegear rang. "In fact, that's probably him now."_

_"Hello?" Ash answered._

_"Where are you? If this is some kind of joke…" Professor Oak fumed._

_"I'm sorry, Professor Oak. La… uh… Sabrina came and woke us up in the middle of the night because of an important issue. We're on our way back right now. Sorry to have worried you." Ash spoke quickly so that he wouldn't be interrupted and then hung up and added to Lorenzo and Latias. "We'll be back after we sort things out with Professor Oak."_

_"Please hurry. We need to find my granddaughter soon." Lorenzo begged._

_"We'll do our best." Tracey promised._

_The two boys hurried back to their hotel, where Professor Oak was waiting impatiently._

_"You two have some explaining to do." He told them angrily as they stopped to catch their breath._

_"We know, Professor Oak. We know." Ash breathed._

_**Two hours later…**_

_Ash and Tracey were on their way back to Lorenzo's house when a suction cup hit Ash on the waist. All of a sudden, he was yanked into the water._

_"Ash!" Tracey screamed. He tried to follow, but could hardly move out of his wheelchair. "Ash!"_

_In a panic, he rushed to Lorenzo's house where he found the old man watching the news._

_Lorenzo turned. "Bianca isn't the only one missing…" He whispered. "Where's Ash?"_

_Tracey explained what had happened._

_"Kids have disappeared all over town." Lorenzo murmured. "Bianca and Ash are only two of them. We have to find them. Report what you saw to the police. It might be an important clue."_

_Tracey nodded. "Okay."_

_To be continued…_


	4. Chapter 4

Ash struggled to hold his breath as he was yanked further and further into the depths of the ocean. He wondered if the goal was to drown him.

Finally, when he couldn't hold his breath any longer, he was pulled into an underwater building.

"Hello." A very sinister-sounding voice spoke as Ash coughed out water. "I see you're one of the ones who survived the trip down to our little base. There is no escape. You try to reach the surface and you simply drown."

Ash looked up into the face of one of the people who had helped kill his family.

"Looks like we have a survivor here!" The murderer yelled. "Put him with the others!"

Ash was shoved into a room full of kids just like him, except these kids hadn't lost what he had from the very same people holding him prisoner.

"Ash!" A familiar voice called. Ash turned to see Bianca running towards him. "So you were caught too? At least we're together!"

"How could the guardians of Alto Mare let this happen?" One kid screamed.

"The guardians of Alto Mare were fast asleep, just like everyone else!" Bianca screamed back.

"Aren't the guardians of Alto Mare always awake?" A little girl with a teddy bear asked.

"No. They're living beings, just like the rest of us, but they're awaken easily." Bianca answered.

"Oh." The little girl snuggled her teddy bear. "Will they come save us?"

"I sure hope so." Ash mumbled.

**An hour later…**

"So that's what happened." Tracey told Officer Jenny.

"I see… so you think the missing kids are being held underwater?" Officer Jenny asked.

"Yes…" Tracey replied hesitantly. "I think so…"

"Thank you for trying to help, but I doubt the kids are underwater." Officer Jenny snickered.

Tracey's mouth dropped open. "You don't believe me?"

"What you're suggesting is highly unlikely and I believe you made the whole story up. Please go bother someone else with your make-believes." Officer Jenny told him.

Tracey wheeled himself away. The police didn't believe what might be a very important clue. He would have to figure this out on his own. He went back to Lorenzo's house.

"They didn't believe me. They don't think it's possible the missing kids might be underwater." He reported.

Lorenzo and Latias were outraged.

"We'll just have to look for them ourselves. Latias can hold her breath for long periods of time. She can go search underwater for them." Lorenzo said.

"All right. Latias, be careful."

**A few minutes later…**

"Is that… a girl?" A boy asked, surprised at what he saw. "How was she able to hold her breath for so long?"

"It looks like that artist girl, Bianca." Another boy put in.

"Did somebody say my name?" Bianca questioned, walking over with Ash right behind her.

The two boys looked from her to the girl in the water to her. The resemblance was obvious.

"I think your sister is out there in the water." The first boy pointed.

"Oh my goodness gracious." Bianca exclaimed. "She really is."

"Let's hope _they_ don't see her." Ash said. "Too late."

Suction cups had latched onto Latias and she was being reeled in, although she was struggling like mad to get away.

"No!" Bianca yelled. Everyone ran over to the windows to see what had upset her.

"It's okay! I'll bet she's almost out of breath anyways!" A girl called to Bianca over the dozens of heads at the windows.

"Your grandfather is going to freak when she doesn't come back up to the surface." Ash said.

Latias was brought into the room, soaking wet.

"Wait a second…" The man who'd brought her in said. "I know you! You're that kid who escaped when we were killing off that family!"

Ash bit his lower lip. Everyone had turned to look at him. The man grabbed him.

"There's no escape this time, you little brat. Come on." The man started to drag Ash across the room.

"No! Not in here!" Bianca screamed.

"I can do whatever I want in here." The man responded, not knowing what she was actually talking about. "You can't stop me."

Dozens of kids gasped in wonder. Latias had just transformed back into her true form and cloaked herself.

The man turned around. "What are you kids gasping about? Huh? Where's that new girl?"

Ash tried to get away, but the man had a tight grip on him.

"Whatever. They'll give me a raise when I kill off this kid for them." The man murmured.

The kids gasped again, this time in shock.

The man was suddenly hit from behind by a powerful Mist Ball. He passed out.

"Dude, what's taking so long?" Another man came into the room. He saw his colleague out cold and Ash the only one by him. "You're going to pay for that, pipsqueak!" He yelled.

He reached Ash in two seconds flat and started strangling him. Another Mist Ball hit its mark and Ash crawled away, coughing. Bianca pulled him back to the others as more men came in and made a semicircle around the kids.

Ash closed his eyes and fell unconscious, Bianca still holding onto him.

"If it's a fight you kids want, it's a fight you'll get." One of the new men exclaimed as the first two men recovered from the Mist Balls.

Latias flew, still invisible, in front of the kids. She put up a Safeguard to protect them. Then, she flew over to Bianca and Ash.

"He'll be all right, Latias." Bianca whispered. "Focus on the fight."

Latias dropped her cloak and swerved around to face the men, who were all surprised to see a legendary pokemon in their presence.

"It's one of the guardians of Alto Mare…" One of them muttered, amazed. "How'd Latias get down here?"

"She probably swam." Another mumbled.

"We can outnumber her! Call out your pokemon!" A third one yelled. All the men threw pokeballs and their pokemon came out.

Latias didn't know who to face first, so she kept up the defense.

"Latias!" Bianca called. "Don't get overwhelmed by their numbers! Focus!"

Latias took her childhood friend's advice and focused. She threw several Mist Balls and bonked some pokemon together with her psychic abilities. She fought and fought and, by the time she was done, all the other pokemon were unable to battle.

"Never underestimate a legendary pokemon." Bianca smirked.

"For your smart mouth, we'll take you out with the trash." One of the men said. The smile slipped off Bianca's face. "Men, let's show her what we do to legendary pokemon."

The men pulled out blasters and started firing at Latias. The kids screamed. Latias did her best to protect them.

In the havoc, two of the men grabbed Ash and Bianca and pulled them out of the room.

They pushed and shoved the kids up one floor to the main office, where the man who had greeted Ash when he'd first arrived stood with his back to them.

The man holding Ash cleared his throat.

The man with his back to them turned around. "Yes?"

"We have a couple of trouble-makers." The man holding Bianca said. "What should we do with them?"

"Throw them outside. There's no way they'll reach the surface in time." The man turned around again.

"No!" Bianca screamed. "You can't do that!"

"Shut up, girl!" The man holding her snickered. "We can do whatever we want to you."

**A few minutes later…**

Bianca and Ash found themselves holding onto Ash's Totodile for dear life as it rocketed towards the surface.

Ash had woken up just before they'd been thrown out into the water. It had been his idea to use Totodile.

So Ash was holding onto Totodile while Bianca was holding onto Ash as they attempted to make it to the surface before they drowned.

Bianca reached back with one hand as her favorite beret fell off her head. She almost lost her grip on Ash, but grabbed him again in time. Nothing was more important than reaching the surface right now.

Just as the two kids ran out of breath, they found themselves above water in the evening air. They were a little ways from Alto Mare, but they could still see the lights of the town, proving it wasn't that far.

They swam the rest of the way.

Professor Oak, who had yet to be informed of Ash's disappearance, was enjoying a nice stroll when he saw them in the water.

"What are you two doing down there? Don't you know it's dangerous to swim at night?" He asked them. He helped them out of the water.

Ash ignored Professor Oak's questions. "Thank you, Totodile. You're a life saver."

"Thank you, Totodile." Bianca echoed.

"You take a good rest now." Ash added, and returned his Totodile to its pokeball.

Both kids gave a sigh of relief.

"I seriously thought we were done for." Bianca breathed.

"Me too." Ash put in.

"Pika!" Pikachu jumped onto Ash, knocking him over.

"Ash!" Tracey called.

"Bianca!" Lorenzo screamed.

Both were enveloped in embraces.

"Am I missing something?" Professor Oak asked.

Tracey explained what had happened earlier that day.

"But how did you escape? Where's Latias?" He finished, turning to Ash and Bianca.

"She's still down there." Bianca responded.

"They tried to drown us by pushing us out of their underwater base. They would've succeeded if I hadn't had Totodile with me." Ash explained, holding up Totodile's pokeball.

"Come to our home. We have towels to dry you off with." Lorenzo offered.

"Thank you." Ash noticed for the first time that he was cold and that his teeth were chattering. They all went to Bianca and Lorenzo's place.

**A few minutes later…**

"Ash, I'm sorry I couldn't stop any of this from happening." Professor Oak sat down, next to Ash, who was warming himself by the fireplace. "So much has happened lately. I wish I could've stopped it."

Ash was silent, but a tear slid down his cheek.

"Anyways, I'm sorry." Professor Oak finished.

Ash managed to stop his tears. He had to get over it, but he couldn't. It was still happening.

There was a knock on the door.

"Come in." Lorenzo called.

Officer Jenny stepped into the house. "I'd like to tell you what we found out today, since your kids are involved in this too." She didn't seem to notice Ash and Bianca as she continued. "We suspect the kids are on the other side of the island. We'll be checking in the morning."

Bianca cleared her throat. "You're wrong. The kids are in a secret base at the bottom of the ocean."

"How would you know?" Officer Jenny retorted as she turned to see who had interrupted her. She found herself facing two soaking wet kids wrapped in at least three blankets each.

"We barely survived with our lives." Ash answered angrily. "And you're questioning whether or not we're telling the truth?"

Officer Jenny was shocked silent. She didn't know how to answer them when they were indeed two of the kids gone missing.

"You didn't believe me." Tracey said. "You didn't believe me when I said my friend was yanked into the water. Now you have proof. I'd like to hear what you'd have to say about this."

"I'm sorry for not listening." Officer Jenny sighed. "I guess this investigation is going underwater."

**The next morning…**

"All right. We're just about ready to go." Officer Jenny announced. "Are any of you coming along?"

Ash stepped forward. "I am."

Professor Oak stopped him by putting a hand on his shoulder. "What makes you think you're allowed to go down there again?"

"It's them, Professor Oak. I recognized them from that night. They're the ones who did you-know-what to… to…" Ash started crying.

Professor Oak's expression turned from stern to angry. He pushed Ash over to Lorenzo. "Make sure he stays up here. I don't want him getting hurt."

"Okay." Lorenzo agreed. Bianca watched Ash worriedly.

"Tracey, you stay up here with Ash. He could use some comforting." Professor Oak told his assistant.

Tracey nodded.

**A few minutes later…**

"Ash, please stop crying." Bianca whispered. Professor Oak had gone with the police to look for the underwater base, while Lorenzo, Bianca, Tracey, and Ash had gone inside.

"Don't bother trying. Once he starts, he won't stop for a while." Tracey told her. "He's been like this ever since he lost them. We came here in an attempt to get him away from danger, but I guess you can never escape danger. We could try facing them, but it wouldn't turn out very well on our part."

"How do you know?" Lorenzo asked. "Have you tried?"

"Have _you_ seen what they've done?" Tracey felt upset. "No. You've only heard about it."

There was a moment of awkward silence as everyone gathered together their thoughts.

"Are they the ones who put you in a wheelchair?" Bianca murmured quietly.

Tracey nodded and put a hand on his broken hip. "But that's nothing compared to Ash's loss."

"Ash?" Bianca whispered. "What did you lose?"

Ash looked at Tracey, silently begging him to answer the question.

Tracey did as his friend wanted.

"He lost… his family."

_To be continued…_


	5. Chapter 5

"Oh… oh, Ash…" Bianca stammered, thinking of how she would feel if she lost her grandfather. "I'm so sorry…"

Ash didn't say a word. He didn't want to think about it. It seemed he couldn't avoid it, though. His thoughts always turned back to them.

"They've been after him for months, trying to finish what they started." Tracey continued. "I don't know what their problem is."

"Being a target is no fun, that's for sure." Lorenzo put in. "We could hide him in our garden until it's over, but I'm sure he wouldn't enjoy it."

Suddenly, there was the sound of breaking glass. A man with a machine gun had broken into the house.

"Get out of my way and you won't get hurt." He threatened.

Ash dove behind the couch. Nobody else moved. The man started firing. He fired until he had no bullets left. The couch was blown to smithereens, but Ash wasn't behind it.

"What the…" The man was surprised his prey had escaped, and Ash had. He'd snuck into the secret garden when the man wasn't looking.

"Ash!" Lorenzo, Bianca, and Tracey cried, thinking he had been hit.

"Where'd he go?" Tracey asked.

"He must've gone outside and used the boat to get away." Bianca said, hoping the man would believe her.

He did, and so did Tracey, who tried to follow the man outside, but was stopped by Lorenzo.

"Come on! While he's distracted!" Lorenzo whispered and pushed Tracey into the secret garden followed by Bianca.

They found Ash sitting by the fountain containing the Soul Dew.

"Ash!" Tracey breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank goodness you're okay!"

"I crawled away in the nick of time." Ash replied quietly.

"Well, we gave that man a false lead that should take him a while. I think it's safe to go back." Lorenzo said.

Ash shook his head. "Uh-uh. I'm staying in here."

"I think Ash has a good idea. This is the safest place right now. It always has been." Bianca put in.

"All right." Lorenzo decided. "Tracey, you stay here too. I'll go check for Latias and Professor Oak." He left.

"This is a beautiful garden." Tracey murmured, looking around.

"Yes, it really is." Bianca agreed. "Latias lives in this garden."

"A Latias lives in this garden? I'd love to see her." Professor Oak said. The three kids turned to see him follow Lorenzo and Latias in. Latias giggled. "I've always been fascinated with legendary pokemon. I heard two watched over this town and always wanted to see them. By the way, what happened to the couch and window?"

Everyone responded with silence. Ash shifted uncomfortably.

Professor Oak repeated his question. "What happened to the couch and window?"

"It doesn't matter." Everyone was surprised that Ash was the one to answer. "It's over."

"What do you mean, Ash?" Professor Oak asked.

"He's gone now, right?" Ash sounded really uncertain.

"No." Lorenzo shook his head. "He's running around somewhere in the city. Stay here, okay?"

"Could somebody please tell me who you're talking about?" Professor Oak questioned, frustrated. Latias nodded.

"Someone showed up with a machine gun and started shooting at Ash, who had hidden behind the couch." Bianca explained. "It was scary, but Ash fortunately managed to escape into the garden and we gave the man a false lead."

Latias ran over to Ash and hugged him. She was scared the man would come back and hurt her friend.

"It's okay. I'm okay." Ash whispered to her.

Professor Oak walked over too. "We need to report this to the police. It's good that you escaped, but nobody's safe with that madman running around."

Ash nodded. "Just don't tell them about the garden."

Professor Oak was confused. "Why not?"

Lorenzo stepped in. "This is a secret garden to protect Latias and the Soul Dew. Now that you've been trusted with this secret, we won't let you out of this garden until you promise to keep it. Same with you, Tracey. You need to promise to keep this place a secret."

"I promise." Tracey said. "This is the most gorgeous garden I've ever seen. It deserves to be kept a secret."

"I guess I promise too." Professor Oak agreed. "It's been a while since I've seen a place that needed to be kept secret. You can trust me. However, I still think we need to tell the police about the man who tried to shoot Ash. We just won't tell them where Ash went to get away."

Lorenzo nodded. "All right. I'll come with you."

**That night…**

"All right. We're getting bonus points for capturing Latias as well as the kid." Oakley whispered as she and Annie snuck into the secret garden, where Ash had been told to stay for his own safety.

Latias looked up and growled. Annie threw an electric net that hit right on the target.

Latias fell to the ground on top of Ash, who woke up.

"Latias!" He cried, before being hit with a second electric net.

"Say good night, you little brat." Oakley snickered and sprayed him in the face with a gas that put him right to sleep.

"What do we do now that we've nabbed them?" Annie asked.

"We take them to the helicopter and head to the rendezvous point." Oakley responded. "Let's go!"

**A few minutes later…**

Bianca and Lorenzo hurried into the garden.

"I thought I heard something!" Bianca explained as they ran. "Ash! Wake up! Where are you? Ash!"

Bianca and Lorenzo searched the entire garden, but they couldn't find Ash or Latias anywhere.

The sun was beginning to rise by the time they had searched every square inch and were sure Ash and Latias weren't there.

"Where could they be?" Bianca whispered. "No bad guys know about this place except… Grandpa! You don't think those two girls could've come back, could they have?"

Lorenzo wiped his brow. "It's unlikely, but, at this point, I'm thinking anything could have happened to them."

"Hey! Figured we'd find you guys in here!" Tracey called. Bianca and Lorenzo turned around to see him and Professor Oak heading towards them. "Good morning!"

"So, where's Ash?" Professor Oak asked.

Bianca and Lorenzo glanced at each other, and then Bianca murmured one word:

"Gone."

**Meanwhile…**

"One, two, three, push!" A couple of men grunted as they dumped Ash into the ocean far away.

Latias struggled hard as her friend sank into the sea. She cried out, begging someone to save her friend.

A Lugia surged towards the sinking child, grabbed him, and dragged him towards a nearby island. Then, the Lugia went back for Latias.

It burst up and blasted the helicopter, grabbing Latias as she tumbled out. It then took Latias to the island as well. However, Lugia had forgotten where it had left Ash, so it put Latias somewhere else.

"He is somewhere on this island." It told Latias mentally. "I have forgotten where, but he will be in safe hands until you are reunited with him."

Latias nuzzled the Lugia to say thank you. She was grateful the Lugia had saved her friend.

"I have not hands to untie you, but someone will." Lugia continued. "I have done all I can for you, but I must go now."

Latias nodded and watched the kind Lugia leave. Then, she transformed into a clone of Bianca and untied herself. She ran off to find Ash.

**Meanwhile…**

Melody walked down to the beach and was surprised to find an old friend laying there unconscious.

"Ash?" She whispered. "Wake up." She shook him.

Ash moaned but did not wake up.

Worried, Melody dragged Ash to her home in the village, where everyone was still asleep. There, she placed him in her bed and pulled the covers over him before going to wake her sister and let her know.

**A few minutes later…**

"Ash is _missing_?" Professor Oak cried.

"We couldn't find him or Latias anywhere." Bianca replied. "I'm worried."

"The only villains who know about this place are two girls who work for Team Rocket. I can see why they'd want Latias, but why would they take Ash?" Lorenzo said.

"Maybe…" Tracey murmured. "Maybe they made a deal with the people who want Ash…"

"That's unlikely, but possible." Bianca put in. "The question is… where is he now?"

**An hour later…**

"You're… um… looking for somebody?" Melody questioned, confused by the girl's behavior.

Latias nodded, hoping Melody would help.

"What does he or she look like?" Melody asked.

Latias knew she couldn't describe that without talking. She begged with her eyes, praying the Melody would understand.

"I'm sorry. I forgot. You're mute. Well, let me take you to my place. Perhaps my sister can help more." Melody offered.

Latias nodded, deciding to go with that plan. If Ash had been found already, he would be in the village where Melody lived. She followed Melody to a small house where she was asked to sit down.

"Carol!" Melody called. "I found someone on my walk! She's looking for somebody!"

"Quiet down, Melody. You might wake him up." An older girl walked into the room. "Not that that would be a bad thing, but still." Carol observed their new guest. "Hello. What's your name?"

"She's mute." Melody explained.

"Do you think she's looking for Ash?" The moment the name came out of Carol's mouth, Latias jumped up and started nodding frantically. "Oh! You are? He's right in here!"

Latias followed Carol into another room, where Ash was sleeping peacefully. She put a hand on Ash's forehead, like she had once seen Bianca do when Lorenzo was sick.

"He's all right." Carol promised. "I already checked."

Latias gave a small relieved smile, wondering what she would have done if she had lost Ash.

"We're looking for a Latias. It's a pokemon that can change its form to look like a human." A voice came from outside.

"Well, I can't help you there. It could be anyone. If it changed to look like one of our villagers, it would be impossible to find." A villager said.

Back inside, Latias was scared. They obviously weren't looking for Ash, so he was safe, but if they found her, they would find him. She turned to Melody and Carol, begging for help.

Ash began to moan and stir. All three girls were suddenly silent. You could hear a pin drop in that room. Ash sat up and looked around.

"Where am I?" He whispered. "What happened?"

Latias embraced him. Melody and Carol stared.

"I'm glad to see you too. Where are we?" Ash murmured.

Melody stepped forward. "You're on Shamuti Island."

"Melody? Um… It's nice to see you again?" Ash stammered. "How'd we get from Alto Mare to Shamuti Island?"

Carol looked out the window. "Maybe those people have an answer for you."

Ash joined her. "Oh no. Not them again."

"They're looking for a pokemon." Melody filled him in. "I feel sorry for that poor pokemon. Those people don't seem nice."

Ash glanced at Latias. "They're not."

"I'm going to tell them to back off." Melody fumed. "That pokemon should be left in peace."

"Melody! Don't!" Carol and Ash called after her.

They both went to follow her, but Ash was stopped by Latias.

"Latias, let me go! She's my friend!" Ash struggled against her.

Latias shook her head. She pointed to Ash then the floor then to her then the door.

"You want me to stay here, while you go out there?" Ash understood. "I can't do that!"

Latias grabbed some rope and tied him to the bed.

Ash groaned. "Come on! I have to do something!"

Latias ran out the backdoor and transformed before cloaking herself and heading to the front of the house.

Melody was being held knife to neck by Oakley, while Carol was begging them to let her go.

"Please! My little sister didn't mean it! Please let her go!" Carol pleaded.

"Dream on! This kid had no right to stand up to us! She deserves to…" Oakley began.

A Mist Ball barreled through the sky and hit Oakley's hand. The knife went spiraling out of control and hit the ground.

"Hello, Latias! We figured that would bring you out!" Oakley said. "Mad at us for drowning your little friend? Go ahead and give it all you've got!"

"Drowning her friend?" Melody whispered. She remembered how Ash had been wet and unconscious when she'd found him. Had they tried to drown _him_?

"You're monsters!" Carol yelled. "How could you do that?"

A barely visible figure hovered in front of them, defending them from Annie, Oakley, and the people who'd tried to kill Ash.

Latias dropped her cloak and pushed another Mist Ball at them.

They surrounded her with their pokemon.

She easily took their pokemon out.

Ash watched from inside the house, wanting so badly to join the fight, but knowing he couldn't let them know he was alive.

The battle ended with the bad guys retreating in a new helicopter, knowing they couldn't get Latias back no matter how hard they tried.

Latias went into the forest and transformed back into Bianca's double. Then, she hurried back into Melody and Carol's house.

"Latias fought really well out there, driving them off like that." Carol was saying. She saw Latias and added. "Hey! Why'd you tie Ash to the bed like that?"

Latias pointed at Ash, shook her head, and pointed at the door.

"Well, why couldn't he go outside?" Carol asked angrily.

"Carol." Melody answered for her. "I think Ash was the one they tried to drown, but somebody saved him."

Latias nodded.

"I have no clue what happened." Ash muttered. "I just know Annie and Oakley showed up in the garden in Alto Mare and knocked me out with some sort of sleeping gas. The next thing I know, I'm waking up here."

"So those girls, Annie and Oakley, knocked you out with sleeping gas and tried to drown you?" Carol summed up.

"I guess so. Right now, I need to contact Professor Oak somehow." Ash said.

"Maybe Nurse Joy can help you reach the pokemon center in Alto Mare. Then, she or someone else can find Professor Oak and give him your message." Melody suggested.

"Wait! My pokegear!" Ash remembered. "I can call him with that!"

"That's an even better idea." Melody shrugged. "Do it."

**A moment later…**

Professor Oak's pokegear rang. He had been pacing back and forth, trying to figure out what to do. Now, he dove for the phone.

Tracey reached it first. "Hello? Huh? Ash! Thank goodness!"

"Tracey, can you hand me the pokegear, please?" Professor Oak asked, trying to hide how desperate he was.

"You want to speak to Professor Oak? Okay!" Tracey handed the pokegear to the professor.

"Where are you?" Professor Oak spoke into the pokegear. "How'd you get there? Is Latias with you? What a relief you're both all right. Stay there. We're coming." He hung up. "Tracey, we're going to Shamuti Island."

_To be continued…_


	6. Chapter 6

Ash sighed as he put his pokegear back into his pocket. It seemed nobody trusted him to be out in the world alone anymore.

He walked to the window and stared out at the sunset. Latias sat on the bed behind him. She got up and tapped him on the shoulder. He turned to look at her. Her eyes asked if he was okay.

"No, I'm not okay." He answered. "Whenever I'm alone now, Professor Oak freaks out. If I go out without him, he makes sure it's with someone he's okay with. He's so protective now that my parents are gone. Oh, you didn't know about that, did you?"

Ash started crying, as he did whenever he remembered he was an orphan. He sank down on the bed. Latias hugged him in an attempt to comfort him.

Melody opened the door. Ash quickly hid his tears as she and Carol walked in.

"Professor Oak is on his way." He informed them, his voice unfortunately reflecting his mood.

"What's wrong?" Melody questioned. "Is something wrong with Professor Oak coming here?"

Ash shook his head, still not looking at them. "It's not that. It's… something else…" He shook his head again. "It doesn't matter, okay?"

"Well, you and your friend are welcome to stay here for the night. We'd be honored to have you as our guests." Carol told him.

"Thank you." He responded. "We're very grateful for your hospitality."

"No problem." Carol replied. "Sleep as long as you'd like. See you in the morning."

**The next morning…**

Ash yawned as he walked into the kitchen. After a moment, he stopped short.

Professor Oak, Tracey, and Bianca were all there waiting for him.

Latias walked in behind him and ran over to hug Bianca.

"Melody and Carol were filling us in on what happened." Professor Oak told Ash. "I'm just glad you're all right."

Ash didn't say anything. He had had a nightmare last night, but he didn't dare tell anyone about it.

"Ash! Ash, are you listening?" Professor Oak snapped, bringing him back to the present.

"Sorry! What did you say?" Ash quickly responded.

"I said that I think the best course to take is to send you somewhere those criminals wouldn't think to look." Professor Oak repeated for him. "That's why I'm sending you to stay with Professor Birch in the Hoenn region."

"Wouldn't the criminals check there?" Ash said, wanting to get out of staying with Professor Birch.

"You'd think so, which is why they won't check there." Professor Oak replied. "I just want you to be safe, Ash. Professor Birch will take care of you."

Figuring he had no choice, Ash went along with the plan, and, a few days later, he found himself at Professor Birch's lab.

"Hello, Ash." Professor Birch said, letting him in. Pikachu ran right in, but Ash paused a moment at the door, staring at the ground. "You're not happy about this arrangement, are you?"

Ash didn't answer. He just followed Professor Birch up to the room he'd be staying in, put down his stuff, and sat down on the bed.

"Ash, if you want to talk, I'm here if you need me." Professor Birch offered. He paused. "You know, Professor Oak is just trying to take care of you. He doesn't want to see you hurt again. It's been difficult for him too. He really liked your mother, you know."

Ash still didn't answer, but, after Professor Birch left, he thought about what had been said.

"I still think they're babying me." He murmured to Pikachu. "Just because I lost my parents doesn't mean they have the right to treat me like a little kid."

**That night…**

Professor Birch sat down with Ash after a silent dinner.

"I know you're not happy here, Ash, but can you at least say something. I don't know what you want unless you tell me." Professor Birch began.

Ash punched a pillow. "I want to go on a new journey. I want to meet new people and see new lands and pokemon."

"I'm sorry, Ash. I can't help you there." Professor Birch told him. "Professor Oak is responsible for taking care of you now that… you know… It's up to him whether or not you can start a new journey."

Ash punched the pillow again. "Fine. I'm going to bed." He marched upstairs.

**That midnight…**

Ash rose from his bed and started packing his backpack.

"Pika?" Pikachu asked.

Ash left the room, with Pikachu in tow, and headed down to the kitchen, where he stuffed some food into his backpack.

"Pika!" Pikachu realized what was going on and, trying to stop his trainer, grabbed Ash's leg as he left the house.

"You either stay here or you come with me." Ash said. "But you can't stop me from going."

"Pika Pi!" Pikachu yelled as loud as he could, hoping to wake Professor Birch. A light went on in the house.

Ash made a run for it. Pikachu ran after him.

**The next morning…**

"He ran away?" Professor Oak screamed into the phone. Tracey looked up from what he was doing.

"His note said he was tired of us treating him like a baby and that he'd show us all he could take care of himself." Professor Birch told him.

"Have you informed the local police?" Professor Oak asked worriedly as Tracey came to join him.

"Yes. Officer Jenny said she'd keep an eye out for him." Professor Birch replied.

"It isn't like Ash to run away." Tracey cut in. "He might be daring, but he's not stupid."

"I agree, but he's also upset, and that might stop him from thinking straight." Professor Oak responded. "Professor Birch, thanks for letting me know. I'm on my way." He hung up the phone.

"Wait. What about me?" Tracey questioned.

"I need you to take some special pokemon food to Misty. Stay there until I call for you." Professor Oak answered.

"Okay…" Tracey was uneasy about traveling alone because of all the danger that had been following them around lately. He wondered if there was a way to get out of it, but he knew that Professor Oak knew that he liked going to see Misty and her sisters. "Can't the mailman do it?"

"You've never protested going before." Professor Oak said. "Why now?"

"Okay. I'll go." Tracey responded quickly, not wanting to worry him.

"All right. See you in however long it takes to find Ash. It shouldn't take long." Professor Oak told him.

"Okay. Bye." Tracey and Professor Oak set off in different directions.

Tracey had just reached the woods outside of town when a hand slapped over his mouth and an arm wrapped around his arms and torso. Struggling like mad, he was snatched out of his wheelchair and dragged into the forest,

**That evening…**

Ash fought his way through the brush with Pikachu on his shoulder. He had vowed to stay away from the path so he wouldn't get found. Now, he was completely lost.

It was getting late and he found a random clearing in the middle of nowhere. Exhausted, he pulled out something to eat and shared it with Pikachu. Then, he lay down to sleep.

Around midnight, something woke Pikachu.

"He's still alive?" A voice whispered.

"It seems that way." Another voice whispered back.

"Pika! Pika!" Pikachu shook his trainer.

"Pikachu, it's the middle of the night. I'm trying to sleep." Ash mumbled.

"Pikachu!" Pikachu thunderbolted him.

"Okay! Okay! I'm…" Ash froze when he saw he was surrounded on all sides by the very criminals who'd been trying to kill him for months. "…up?"

"How should we go through with this?" One man asked, cracking his knuckles.

"Knife through the heart." Another man suggested.

"Choke him." A third man put in.

Ash gulped. He was helpless. If only he hadn't run away…

"I have an idea." Oakley stepped forward. "How about we torture him until he's begging us to kill him? Then, we torture him some more."

Ash squeezed his eyes shut as everyone agreed to Oakley's idea.

"Pika!" Ash's eyes snapped back open as Pikachu was hit by a rubber net.

"Pikachu!" He screamed.

"Leave his Pikachu here and search him for any other pokemon." Oakley instructed. "After that, we'll be on our way with him as our captive." She grinned.

Ash screeched for help as he was tied up and marched to a van. The criminals told him to shut up several times, but he kept it up, hoping someone would come and save him.

He had no such luck.

**The next morning…**

Professor Oak knocked on the door to Professor Birch's lab. He had traveled through the night to get to Hoenn and was exhausted.

"Hello, Professor Oak." Professor Birch opened the door and let Professor Oak in. "I'm afraid to tell you what I just found out."

Professor Oak raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Why would you be afraid to tell me?" They turned into the living room to find Officer Jenny sitting on the couch. On the coffee table next to her were Ash's backpack and Pikachu.

The color drained from Professor Oak's face. He sank into an armchair.

"We don't know where Ash is, but it seems he was kidnapped by someone. His Pikachu was caught in a net and his backpack and sleeping bag were abandoned in the woods." Professor Birch explained to Professor Oak what Officer Jenny had explained to him.

"I was afraid something like this would happen after he ran away." Professor Oak murmured.

"Why did the boy run away in the first place?" Officer Jenny questioned. "There must have been some reason why he was out there alone when he wasn't supposed to be."

"He was upset that we wouldn't let him be anywhere alone." Professor Birch said.

"We were only trying to protect him from some people who have been trying to kill him." Professor Oak added. "I thought they wouldn't find him if I sent him here, but I guess I was terribly wrong."

"So he basically thought you were treating him unfairly?" Officer Jenny asked.

"Yes." Professor Oak sighed, wishing he could have known and done something to prevent it.

Suddenly, the phone rang. Professor Birch picked it up.

"Hello, Professor Birch speaking." He listened for a moment. "Professor Oak, it's for you."

Professor Oak took the phone from him. As he listened, he turned paler than he already was.

"Do his parents know?" He asked. "Okay. Okay. Please, do whatever you can. Thank you."

"Professor Oak, what is it?" Professor Birch questioned after Professor Oak hung up.

"Tracey has gone missing as well." Professor Oak whispered.

**Meanwhile…**

Tracey woke up in time to see Ash pushed into his cell.

"Ash!" He cried, rushing over to his friend.

Ash moaned and opened his eyes. "Tracey? What are you doing here?"

"I don't know. I have no clue what they want from me. If they were able to kidnap you, why'd they keep you alive? No offense, I'm just curious. I mean, they've been trying to kill you for a long time." Tracey felt ashamed for asking, but he couldn't take the question back.

"They've decided to put me to death by torture." Ash answered, and then added, sarcastically. "I can't wait."

"That's really bad. I'm really sorry for you." Tracey responded. "Just be glad you're still alive."

"Is that the best you've got to cheer me up?" Ash questioned.

"Yep." Tracey replied. "Just be glad you're still alive."

Months passed. Ash went through regular torture sessions. It was hard enough for Tracey just to see his friend stumble back from them, covered in bruises worse than the day before. The boys were only fed scraps once a day and both grew very weak.

One day, Ash was carried into the cell after a torture session and dropped onto the floor. Tracey scrambled over to see what was different.

He carefully touched his friend. Ash didn't wake up. Tracey checked to make sure he was still breathing. He was, so the criminals must not have killed him.

It was too much for Tracey. He vowed to run away that night.

**That midnight…**

Tracey picked the lock to their cell. There were no guards outside, because the criminals thought the boys were too weak to run away.

Tracey carefully heaved Ash onto his back and crept into the hallway. It wasn't until they were outside that the alarm went off.

Tracey ran through the woods as fast as he could. He had healed from the shot in his hip and could function without a wheelchair now.

Outside of their prison, the world seemed different, and it wasn't because it was nighttime. Pokemon hid as he passed by. Clouds covered the sky and it started to thunder.

Tracey looked up as it started to rain. He quickly found a hiding place and placed Ash down gently.

Soon after, the criminals ran right past them. The rain had covered up their footprints and now they couldn't be found easily.

The storm lasted through the night and the next day. Tracey and Ash stayed where they were the whole time, Tracey getting increasingly worried they would be found.

They were, but not by their original captors.

_To be continued…_


	7. Chapter 7

Tracey awoke around noon to someone shaking him.

"This one won't wake." A voice near him whispered.

"This one stirred." An even closer voice responded.

Tracey opened his eyes to see two men leaning into their hiding place. They dragged him and Ash out.

"I'm awake." Tracey murmured. "Let go of us now."

"First, tell us why you were hiding." The first man ordered.

Tracey got an idea. "Help my friend get better, and I'll tell you whatever you want to know."

The man grunted. "Okay. Billy, check them both for trackers. We don't want you-know-who finding our base."

Tracey was confused. "Base?"

"This is war, kid. You'll find every trainer with a pokemon reports to a rebel base now." Billy told him.

"Um… how can the world have changed that much in a few months?" Tracey muttered to himself, as Billy ran a metal detector over him and Ash.

"No trackers. We're clear." Billy reported.

"We haven't introduced ourselves. I'm Joe and this is Billy. We belong to Rebel Base 650." Joe introduced.

"I'm Tracey and my friend is named Ash. We don't belong to a rebel base." Tracey responded sheepishly.

"Don't belong to one, eh? Perhaps you can join ours." Joe said. "Follow us. Billy will carry your friend."

"Um… Thank you?" Tracey followed the two rebels through the woods to a very wide tree with a small hole in it.

Joe flashed a badge across the hole and a tunnel opened next to them. Billy went first with Ash. Tracey followed with Joe bringing up the rear.

**A few minutes later…**

"YOU BROUGHT STRANGERS TO OUR BASE?" The leader of Rebel Base 650 screeched. Billy and Joe hung their heads. "You should be ashamed of yourselves! How do we know we can trust them? Sampson, lock these two up!"

"Wait!" Tracey cried. "Please, sir! My friend is hurt! He can't possibly do anything to harm you! Please, help him!"

The leader pressed his lips together. "Fine. Billy, I'll trust you to take the boy to the infirmary. Sampson, lock that one up."

"Sorry, kid." Joe whispered as Tracey was pushed past. Tracey glared at him.

**That evening…**

Tracey looked up as a very old Scyther came to stand in front of his cell. Next to it were a Marill and a Venonat.

Together, they broke the bars of Tracey's cell, freeing him.

Tracey climbed out and hugged his pokemon, overjoyed to see them again.

"Tracey?" Tracey looked up to see a girl walking towards him.

"Iris?" He replied, recognizing her.

"Oh! It is you!" Iris cried. "How did you get here? Do you know where Ash is? Do you have any idea how worried we've all been?"

"Whoa! Slow down on the questions!" Tracey responded, and then explained all he could.

"I know, our rebel base leader can be harsh like that, but he's just concerned about being found out by the wrong people." Iris said when he was finished. "Do you know anything about the enemy's plans?"

Tracey felt it was his turn to ask the questions. "What's going on here? Since when is there a war and rebel bases?"

Iris sighed and then began to answer carefully. "You see, a few months ago, the criminal organizations of the world… let me cut to the chase here. They banded together and took over the world."

Tracey's mouth dropped open. "They _what_?"

"Then, they threatened to arrest anyone who didn't work for them and owned pokemon. That's when the rebel bases came about. People can't handle not having pokemon, so they rebel. Rebels report to rebel bases to keep in contact with other rebels and join in planning public rebellions. Listen, if Ash was taken to the infirmary, I can take you to him. Pikachu disappeared earlier, so I bet we'll find him there too."

Tracey nodded. "Okay."

**Meanwhile…**

"Sorry to disturb you, Doctor, but we need Pikachu for a mission." A rebel told the doctor watching over Ash.

"Pika?" Pikachu looked up.

"I'm sorry, but we need Pikachu here to help keep this boy alive." The doctor responded.

"Why don't you find another electric-type?" Another rebel asked.

"Why don't you?" The doctor retorted.

They started arguing. The heart monitor stopped beeping. Pikachu was the only one who noticed. In an attempt to save his trainer, he used thunderbolt, shocking more than just his intended target.

That was how things were when Tracey and Iris entered the infirmary.

"What was that for, Pikachu?" The rebel who'd begun the conversation yelled.

"Pika…" Pikachu looked again at the monitor and again used thunderbolt on everyone there.

"These signs are unmistakable... The boy is fading..." The doctor whispered.

"No!" Tracey and Iris cried in unison, drawing attention to themselves.

"Hey! You're supposed to be locked up! I heard the boss order you to be!" The second rebel exclaimed, pointing to Tracey.

"Shut up! He deserves to be with Ash right now more than you do!" Iris screamed at him.

"Pika!" Pikachu shocked everyone again. The monitor stared beeping again.

Iris and Tracey breathed sighs of relief.

The doctor stepped forward. "This is why we need Pikachu here. It knows what to do and the child doesn't stand a chance without it."

"Pikachu wouldn't leave anyway. I know how close he and Ash are and they've been separated for months." Tracey declared.

Everyone but Iris stared at him as if he were crazy.

"How do _you_ know who that Pikachu belongs to? Nobody else does. You're probably wrong anyways." The first rebel said.

"Ash is my friend. That's his Pikachu. Although it somehow gained a blue bandana while they were apart." Tracey responded.

"Blue bandanas are rewarded to the base's strongest pokemon." Iris explained.

"Oh." Tracey shrugged. "But you can tell just by the way Pikachu's acting that Ash is his trainer."

Everyone turned to look at Pikachu, who was nuzzling Ash affectionately.

"I… I see…" The first rebel stammered. "Very well then. I guess we can let Pikachu stay here. We can save that mission for later." The two rebels left.

"I'd better be going too." Iris told Tracey. "I have work to do around the base. You stay here with Ash. It's best we don't leave him alone."

Tracey nodded slowly. "Okay. I'll watch over him."

"Good! See you later!" Iris exited the infirmary.

Tracey sat down next to Ash. The base leader marched in.

"How did you get out?" He screamed.

"My pokemon helped me." Tracey whispered.

"Sir, please don't yell. These people are sick." The doctor said.

The base leader lowered his voice in an intimidating way. "Fine, but this kid is coming with me."

Tracey gulped. "But… I promised Iris I'd stay here…"

"Wait. You don't mean the Iris who works at this base, do you?" The base leader asked, his eyes widening. "She has a high reputation here."

"She's my friend." Tracey murmured.

"Sir!" Iris ran back into the infirmary. "I was looking for you! I need to speak to you about something!"

The base leader stared at her for a second. "Well? What is it?"

"Well… I was thinking… Isn't the enemy of our enemy our friend? I was thinking maybe Tracey could join Rebel Base 650. He's on our side. He's against our enemy." Iris explained.

The base leader glanced at Tracey, who was gaping at Iris. "I'll think about it. For now, watch over him. I don't want him wandering around the base by himself."

"Yes sir!" Iris saluted him as he left.

After that, she and Tracey just sat and watched Ash.

**The next evening…**

Tracey was sworn in to Rebel Base 650.

**The next morning…**

"Ready for your first mission, kid?" A buff rebel shook Tracey awake.

"What is it?" Tracey asked, nervously.

"Nothing difficult. We just need to get supplies. You've been assigned to help." The rebel told him.

"Oh." Tracey was relieved. It sounded so simple. "So, where are we going to get the supplies?"

"Professor Birch's place. Rumor has it that Professor Oak is visiting him right now. Awesome, right?" The rebel said.

Tracey froze in the middle of putting on his socks. He couldn't face Professor Oak, not this soon after escaping, not while Ash was still lying unconscious in the infirmary. He sat down on the bed and put his head in his hands.

"Is something wrong?" The rebel asked, concerned.

"No. I'm fine. Let's get this over with." Tracey murmured, getting up and slipping on his shoes.

"You're not excited to meet Professor Oak?" The rebel questioned.

"Well, not exactly. You see, I already know him and well… It's hard to explain. I want to see him again… but I'm not ready." Tracey attempted to explain.

"I see… Well, you're required to go anyway." The rebel said. "It can't be helped."

**A few hours later…**

"Iris, what do you see?" Tracey asked Iris, who was looking through a set of binoculars. "Is it clear?"

The group was hidden behind some bushes a little ways from Professor Birch's.

"No. The enemy is there, taking all the supplies and…" She gasped. "They're arresting the professors! And some other people!"

Tracey and the three other rebels that were with them also gasped.

"Why those…" Tracey grumbled. Iris grabbed him and covered his mouth.

"Shh! I want to listen!" She hissed.

"You're under arrest for providing supplies to rebel bases." One of the enemy officers announced. "That's right. We've found you out."

"Once you're out of the way, the rebels will have nowhere to go for food and they'll come running to us, begging for forgiveness, and then we can get rid of them all." Another grinned.

"What should we do?" A skinny rebel questioned. "We can't just reveal ourselves to them."

"I'm sure Tracey wants to get out there and fight them, and that's exactly what we're going to do." Iris whispered. "Okay. Here's the plan; Jake, you and Gerald will cause a distraction. Tracey, Flora, and I will rescue the professors, and others, while the enemy isn't paying as much attention. Ready?"

"Wait!" Tracey cried. "My parents are there! They'll pay more attention to being reunited with me than to escaping."

Iris agreed. "Okay. Stay here until Jake and Gerald run to escape. Take the binoculars. Ready? Go!"

Tracey watched via binoculars as the operation was carried out. He ran when Jake and Gerald ran and managed to lose the enemy in the woods. They met up with Iris and Flora halfway back to base.

"Tracey!" Professor Oak and Tracey's parents yelped.

"Tracey, we were so worried about you!" His mother sobbed. "We thought the most horrible things!"

Flora cleared her throat. "On to a more important subject, what now? We have almost no supplies and no supplier."

A walkie-talkie buzzed in Iris's pocket. "Iris! Do you copy?"

Iris pulled it out and pressed the button on it. "We copy, leader." She let go so that she could hear the response.

"The base was found and everyone arrested. Some rebels were even killed for resisting. The infirmary was locked down in time, so they're safe. I need you to return to base to make sure the patients are safely transferred to Rebel Base 675. This is your last mission from me. Make sure it's done right!" The base leader exclaimed.

"This is bad." Tracey said, still wrapped in his parents' embrace. "Really bad. We need to hurry. They're sure to be back."

"Right! Let's high-tail it back to base immediately!" Iris commanded.

As they ran, Tracey worried about the rebels. Could they possibly be beat until they needed intensive care, like Ash? Or would they be okay?

_To be continued…_


	8. Chapter 8

Iris, Tracey, Professor Oak, Professor Birch, Tracey's parents, Flora, Jake, Gerald, and one other man, whose identity was a mystery, arrived at the base to find the patients being loaded into what looked like a moving truck by some unfamiliar people.

"Let me see your badges." Iris demanded of all of them. "This is our base and I want to make sure you're on our side before you take our friends."

The people flashed badges at her that were different yet similar to the one Tracey had received the night before.

Iris showed her badge as well. "What's the plan?"

"We're loading the patients into the truck. When we're done, we'll cover the exit with moving boxes so it doesn't look suspicious. After that, we'll drive them to Rebel Base 675. The doctors will take care of them on the way there and then they'll be taken to our infirmary when we arrive." One of them explained.

Iris turned to the remaining members of Rebel Base 650, the professors, Tracey's parents, and the mysterious man. "Flora, Jake, and I will go with the truck. Everyone else will go by foot. It will take a few days, but you'll get there."

"But… What about…" Tracey stammered.

Iris placed a hand on his shoulder. "Don't worry. I'll make sure nothing happens to him."

"Okay." Tracey mumbled.

"Alright! Let's help out!" Flora said.

Everyone helped in one way or another as the plan was carried out.

Finally, the truck left, leaving several rebels behind to help guide Tracey and the others to the new base.

**Four days later…**

"Well, folks, this is the entrance to Rebel Base 675." Jason, one of the rebels left behind to lead the remainder of the group to the base, announced.

"Great. We're finally here." Tracey murmured, thinking of Ash.

They entered a base much like Rebel Base 650. It was underground and there was a tunnel leading to it and it was filled with rebels.

They had only been standing there for a second when Tracey saw Iris running towards him.

"Tracey! He's awake!" She called.

Tracey immediately knew who she was talking about.

"Who?" His mother questioned.

"Our friend." Tracey answered. The group followed Iris to the rebel base's infirmary, where Rebel Base 650's patients had been taken.

Smiling, Iris took Tracey straight to Ash, who was looking confused.

"How'd I get here?" He asked Tracey. "How'd we…" His voice trailed off. He was staring straight at the mysterious man.

"Ash…" The mysterious man whispered. "Thank goodness you're all right."

Tears welled up in Ash's eyes. "Daddy…"

Tracey and Iris gasped. Jake and Gerald wondered what was so surprising.

"I found out he was alive shortly after you disappeared." Professor Oak told Ash gently. "I would've let you know right away, but I couldn't."

"Daddy…" Ash reached for his father, who grabbed him before he fell out of the bed. Ash was crying hard now. "I thought you were gone forever!"

"No… They never had the chance to make sure the task was complete. There was a witness. I barely caught a glimpse of him, but I know it was thanks to him I survived." His father explained.

Ash was silent for a minute before speaking again. "It was me. I saw you fall and I thought I was too late. They saw me and shot at me, but they missed and I ran. I ran all the way to Pallet Town. I got there in time to see them in the house. I tried to run again, but I was too tired and they got me. Then, Pikachu held them off until Professor Oak found me and I'm sure he's told you the story after that."

Nobody said a word. They were all too shocked by what Ash had just revealed to them.

"Oh… Ash…" Ash's father whispered. "I wish I could have done something to stop them. Did they do this to you?" Ash nodded. "Such horrible people. I'll get them for this."

"Pika." Pikachu nuzzled Ash. He winced.

"I'm okay now." Ash assured everyone. "I'm fine." He leaned back in his father's arms and soon was fast asleep.

His father gently put him back on the pillows and turned to the doctor. "Will he be all right?"

"He seems to be recovering perfectly. As long as he stays in the infirmary, he'll be fine." The doctor responded.

**That night…**

"Boss, we've found another rebel base." Annie spoke into her walkie-talkie quietly. "Should we arrest them?"

"No." Buzzed the walkie-talkie. "Just find the boy."

"Roger." Annie replied. Oakley nodded. It didn't take them long to find the infirmary. It was the biggest structure in the base. They entered and quickly found Ash.

"Don't wake him." Oakley whispered. She sprayed the sleeping gas in his face. He coughed and fell into a deeper sleep. She picked him up. "Let's go."

They managed to exit the base without waking anyone. They hurried back to headquarters.

"We found him, sir." Oakley reported.

"Good." The boss of the combined criminal organizations said. "Lock him up in our highest security cell. We don't want him to have any chance of escaping again."

"Yes sir!" Annie and Oakley chorused.

**The next morning…**

"He's gone!" Ash's father cried. "But how?"

"Sir, we have security cameras." The doctor told him. "Follow me."

**A few minutes later…**

Iris, Tracey, Professor Oak, Professor Birch, Tracey's parents, and Ash's father watched the security video in alarm as Ash was kidnapped by Annie and Oakley.

"He must be at enemy headquarters by now." Iris murmured. "This video is from last night at midnight."

"If he's been taken that far, he's probably in high security by now." Tracey muttered. "We've got to do something."

"I agree." Jason came forward. "I'll take you to our base leader. He'll probably declare this an official mission. Breaking into enemy headquarters will be difficult, but it's not impossible."

"Breaking out will be harder than breaking in." Tracey said. "Ash has recovered since the last time. I know there will be lots of guards."

"What do you mean 'the last time'?" Jason asked.

"Ash and I were prisoners to them before. They had little guards on us at the point we escaped because they thought we were too weak. Shortly after, we were found by two rebels from Rebel Base 650." Tracey explained. "Up until then, we had no clue a war had begun."

"So they basically just wanted their prisoner back?" Jason questioned.

"Yes." Tracey replied. "We've got to save him. They'll kill him if we don't."

"Like I said. Follow me." Jason responded.

The group hurriedly found the base leader.

"Sir." Jason said. "A young boy, a patient from Rebel Base 650, has been kidnapped from the infirmary. If he is not rescued, he will be killed by the enemy. Your orders?"

"I will call for several top rebels to go with you." The base leader answered. "It will be a difficult mission, not suitable for rookies." He pointed at Tracey. "As an amateur, you will stay here with your parents and the professors and Mr. Ketchum."

"No way!" Ash's father screamed. "I'm not staying behind! This is my son we're talking about here!"

The base leader frowned. "I guess I can make an exception for you, but only you. The rest have to stay behind."

"Deal." Everyone except Tracey chorused. Tracey didn't say a word.

"Iris, I expect you to go on the mission as well. Phillip spoke well of you and I suspect you'll be helpful." The base leader said. (Phillip was the base leader of Rebel Base 650)

"Yes sir." Iris replied.

**A few days later…**

"There it is." A rebel called Daniel announced. "Enemy headquarters. Everyone remember the plan we discussed last night?" Everyone nodded. "Good. Operation start."

**Meanwhile…**

Tracey watched as the group of rebels and Ash's father staged their break-in. He had followed them, knowing they would fail without him. They would be the distraction he needed to save Ash. He just hoped they wouldn't get captured.

He knew where all the traps were, so he got in easily. It was just a matter of finding his friend and getting out.

"Marill." He whispered, throwing Marill's pokeball. "Listen for Ash and lead me to him."

Marill took off. Tracey hurried after her, trying to stay quiet.

Suddenly, he heard a voice. "Ready for some more, kid? Doesn't matter! You're a goner anyways!"

Then, he heard Ash moan.

"Marill!" Marill pointed towards a single door.

"Behind there?" Tracey asked quietly.

Tracey opened the door a crack and peeked in. Three muscular men surrounded Ash, who was laying on the ground, eyes half-closed.

Tracey held out Scyther's pokeball. "Scyther, help me out and save Ash."

The men looked up from their prey as Scyther emerged from its pokeball. Tracey stepped into the room behind him, Marill not far behind.

One of the men hit the alarm. Tracey didn't care. He had already known they were going to do that.

"Scyther! Use Quick Attack!" He yelled, not noticing the criminals filing in behind him. One of them grabbed him. He struggled. "Marill! Help me!"

The man who was holding him sprayed sleeping gas in his face and he went limp.

"Marill!" Marill cried.

"Scyther!" Scyther added, distracted from its fight.

The criminals released their pokemon, putting it at fifteen to two odds.

Imagining Tracey giving them commands, the two managed to win the fight, but, when they finished, the criminals had disappeared with both Ash and Tracey.

The fight had only been a distraction.

**Meanwhile…**

"We were lucky we were able to get out without getting caught." Jason breathed.

The group had only just stopped to catch their breath, a mile from enemy headquarters.

"We'll try again tomorrow. For now, get some sleep." Daniel ordered.

**An hour later…**

Iris awoke to a pokemon pushing against her. "Fraxure, I'm trying to sleep." She rolled over.

"Marill!" Marill soaked her with Water Gun.

"Wha… Marill! What are you doing here? But that must mean…" Iris stammered. "Tracey!"

Everyone was awakened by her scream.

"What is it, Iris?" Jason asked groggily.

"It's Tracey. His pokemon is here. Which means he must have followed us, and if he followed us…" Iris trailed off. "What if he was the one who was caught? The one who set off the alarm? He must still be in there!"

"We'll search for him when we go in again." Daniel proclaimed.

"If his pokemon is here, so is he." Ash's father agreed. "Since it's alone, I take it that he's in trouble."

**Meanwhile…**

Scyther roamed through the halls of enemy headquarters. It and Marill had had a disagreement about what to do so Marill was going to get help while Scyther searched for Tracey.

Finally, it turned a corner to find a heavily guarded room. It quickly hid. It knew Tracey was in there, along with Ash.

After a moment's consideration, it stepped back into full view, ready to fight.

And fight was exactly what it had to do.

**The next night…**

"Scy… Scyther!" A voice cried.

"Did you hear that?" Iris whispered.

"Marill!" Marill led them to a locked up Scyther. "Marill Mar." She scolded it.

"Scyther." The Scyther sighed.

"That's… that's Tracey's Scyther!" Iris gasped. The group, not split up this time, unlocked the Scyther's cage.

"Scyther!" Scyther hopped out. "Scyther!" It motioned to a pokeball.

Iris threw it. A Venonat came out. Tracey's Venonat.

"Marill?" Marill asked Venonat. Venonat nodded. "Marill?" Marill added to Scyther.

"Scyther!" Scyther took off.

"I think it knows where Tracey and Ash are." Ash's father whispered. The rest of the group nodded. They followed it.

They reached a door that was surrounded by armed guards. (Armed with pokemon, not guns) Both groups released their pokemon.

**Meanwhile…**

Tracey opened his eyes in time to hear the alarm blaring through the building. Did they know he was here?

He turned and saw Ash laying on the ground nearby, watching him.

"Is someone here to save us?" He asked Tracey quietly. "Or is it just a false hope?"

"No." Tracey whispered. "They're here for us."

For a moment, they just listened to the sounds of battle outside their door.

Then, Ash spoke again. "Am I going to die, Tracey?"

Tracey was surprised by the question. "Not if I can help it." He crawled over to Ash and hugged him. Ash closed his eyes and fell asleep.

That was when the rebels broke in.

"Is he okay?" Iris asked, seeing Ash unconscious in Tracey's arms. Tracey nodded.

"I'll carry him." Jason offered. "We've got to get out of here."

They hurried out of enemy headquarters, Tracey returning his pokemon to their pokeballs as they ran.

"Okay. They think we'll take him straight back to base, but then they'll just kidnap him again. I say we head for the former location of Rebel Base 650. There's equipment there and the infirmary can go on lockdown." Daniel decided when they were far enough away. "It's safest, at least for him."

**The next morning…**

Tracey walked towards the hut Daniel was occupying. He wanted to talk to him about their next course of action. He stopped when he heard a voice inside.

"Your orders, sir?" Daniel asked.

An evil voice buzzed through a walkie-talkie. "Kill them all, starting with the Ketchum boy."

Tracey saw an alarm activation button nearby. He ran over as fast as he could and slapped it.

Everyone came out groggily as the alarm blasted over the loud speakers.

Tracey stared at Daniel and said one word.

"Traitor."


	9. Chapter 9

Everyone turned to look at Tracey in surprise.

"Daniel's not a traitor!" Jason yelled. "He's the leader of this mission!"

Tracey backed away, not daring to take his eyes off of Daniel.

"I'm aware he's the leader of the mission, but I'm also aware he's a traitor, unlike the rest of you." He said.

"I think you're the traitor!" A rebel named Joseph screamed. "You're the one pointing fingers."

"Tie him up. Traitors aren't tolerated here." Daniel ordered.

"Tracey's not a traitor!" Iris joined in the argument. "He's on our side."

"Who says he's not a double agent? Someone shut off the alarm." Daniel commanded. "And tie up that brat while you're at it."

Joseph and Jason tied up Tracey and threw him into one of the cells the rebels had created for prisoners of war.

"I'm telling the truth! I heard him talking to the enemy! He'll kill us all!" Tracey shouted, but no one listened. No one but Iris, that is.

Iris hurried to the infirmary to protect Ash. Daniel was already there. He was sharpening a knife.

"No!" Iris cried.

Daniel looked up. He pressed the button that locked down the infirmary.

"Guess you're going first." He grinned. "Once you're gone, I can get your friend real easy."

"Tracey was right." Iris gasped, backing up as Daniel came closer. "You are a traitor."

"I'm going to corner each and every one of you and murder you all. You're first, the Ketchum kid is next, and then comes your little Tracey friend. After that comes everyone else." Iris bumped into the wall. "So, are you ready?"

Iris dove out of the way as he flung the knife at her. It missed by inches. Daniel yanked it out of the wall and tried again. This time, it sliced through her hair, giving her an uneven haircut.

"Fraxure!" Iris screeched. Fraxure had been hit.

**Meanwhile…**

"Scyther, come on out." Tracey had managed to get a hold of Scyther's pokeball and released it. "Cut me loose."

"Scyther!" Scyther cut Tracey's ropes, freeing him.

"All right! Scyther! Use Slash on those bars!" Tracey commanded, standing up.

Scyther broke the bars.

"Nice try, kid." Joseph came into view. "But you're not going anywhere." He grabbed Tracey's arm.

"Scyther!" Scyther used Quick Attack on Joseph, causing him to let go of Tracey.

"I'm sorry, Joseph. I know you're just confused." Tracey murmured and then ran towards the infirmary just to find it locked down, surrounded by rebels. None of them were facing him, though.

"FRAXURE!" They all heard Iris's scream.

"She's in there with the traitor!" Jason cried. "Something must have happened to her Fraxure!"

"I tried to warn you, but you wouldn't listen." All attention turned to Tracey.

"Wait, you're not the traitor?" A rebel called Bobbie asked.

"HELP!" Iris shrieked, recapturing everyone's attention.

"IRIS! UNLOCK THE BUILDING!" Tracey yelled.

**Meanwhile…**

Iris heard Tracey's demand and looked around wildly for a way to let them in.

"End of the line, kid." Daniel snickered.

Iris dodged another blow and found herself cornered. She didn't dare call out another pokemon for fear they would end up like Fraxure.

On her last idea, she rolled under his legs and saw a button. She hit it. Lock-down was over.

The rest of the group came pouring in, led by Tracey. Iris fell to her knees next to Fraxure and started weeping. Tracey and Ash's father ran to Ash's side. Daniel got there first. He went to kill him, but Ash's father got there in time, Tracey not far behind.

In an attempt to get them out of his way, Daniel pushed the knife sideways. It hit Ash's father in the heart. Tracey grabbed the knife before Daniel could and broke it. Daniel pulled out a gun. He shot at Tracey, who dodged. The bullet hit Joseph in the arm.

"Scyther! Use… use… use Slash!" Tracey stuttered. Scyther slashed Daniel until he fell unconscious. Tracey felt sick in the stomach. Ash woke up.

"What's going on?" He asked.

"There… there was a double agent. He… killed Fraxure and also…" Tracey glanced sideways.

"Daddy!" Ash yelped and started crying uncontrollably. "Daddy…"

"I'm sorry, Ash." Tracey murmured.

"I'm… I'm going to beat them!" Ash sobbed. "Their combined organization thingy… it's going to fall! I promise you, Daddy!"

"I'm with you on that one, Ash!" The anger showed in Iris's eyes as she walked over to them, holding Fraxure in her arms. "They're gonna pay for doing this to our loved ones!"

"For now, we'll lock him up and call the base. They won't be happy about this." Jason said.

"Base?" Ash asked. "What base?"

"I'll explain later, Ash." Tracey promised. "But you won't like it one bit."

**Later…**

"I already knew they had taken over, but they never mentioned rebel bases." Ash told Tracey and Iris.

The group had arrived back at the base and was now in the infirmary there. Ash was still restricted to a bed, so Iris and Tracey took the liberty to explain everything they knew.

"Wait, you _knew_ and you didn't tell me?" Tracey fought to keep his voice down.

"I didn't think you'd like it. All they really talked about was their plans for everyone." Ash murmured.

"Wait! Back up a second! You know about their _plans_?" Iris asked.

"Uh-huh. They're after the legendary pokemon so that…" Ash began.

"Hold that thought! The base leader needs to hear about this!" Iris ran out of the infirmary and, after a few minutes, returned with the base leader.

"Ash! Continue, please!" Iris said excitedly.

Ash just stared at the base leader nervously.

"Ash! You've got to tell! It's important!" Iris pleaded.

"I'm curious just what this is all about." The base leader grumbled.

"They're… they're after the legendary pokemon because… because ruling over everyone isn't enough for them. They want to torture them using the legendary pokemon. They're sending large groups to do the job." Ash paused before continuing. "We have to save the legendary pokemon before they're forced to hurt their friends."

"I see…" The base leader trailed off. "Where and when exactly did you hear all this?"

"I overheard bits and pieces of it every day as they walked me to and from the cell I shared with Tracey. We were both their prisoners for months." Ash answered. "I heard their plans to take over each region and their plans to attack the people. This one has been in progress for a while now."

The base leader stared at him for a second. "Thank you for sharing this information with us. We'll do what we can." With that said, he left. Iris smiled at Ash and then followed.

As Ash closed his eyes and went back to sleep, Tracey thought about what had just been said. Was there more Ash knew about the enemy's plans?

"All rebels please report to the Mess Hall immediately." The base leader's voice boomed over the loudspeakers.

Tracey hesitated. He didn't want to leave Ash, but this might be important. He shook his head. He could find out what was said in the meeting later. His main priority right now was to watch over Ash.

**Meanwhile…**

"Is everyone here? Good! Meeting, begin!" The base leader spoke into the microphone. "We have just received information from a trusted source about the enemy's plans. Iris, do you care to relay what we've learned?"

Iris stepped forward. "The enemy is apparently going after legendary pokemon. This plan is not a new one, but it is the first we've heard of it, which means that the enemy is going about it quietly. Since it is not uncommon to see whole groups of them in the cities these days, it is no surprise they have been able to hide this from us. Once they are finished gathering the legendaries, they will use them to terrorize people and pokemon alike, so we must act fast!"

"Thank you, Iris." The base leader said. "We will split up into groups. Some of you will be going to spread the news to the other rebel bases, while some of you will go to protect the legendary pokemon of this region. Helen will give you your groups. Dismissed!"

Days passed and soon all the rebel bases knew about the enemy's plan. All parts of Hoenn were under constant watch by the rebels. Not much later, the rebels in other regions did the same.

Tracey stayed with Ash at all times. The boy hadn't woken up since the day he had shared the information on the criminals' plans and Tracey was worried about him.

"He still hasn't woken up?" Tracey swerved around to find Professor Oak behind him. Professor Oak sighed. "He must be in a comma then."

Tracey frowned. "I'm aware of that, but how long will it last?"

"You can never know. Commas can last anywhere from days to years. Let's hope this one doesn't last _that_ long." Professor Oak replied. He felt Ash's forehead. "He has a bit of a fever as well. Has the doctor been treating him?"

Tracey nodded. "Yes. She disapproves of me doing nothing but staying here."

"I'm headed back to Kanto. I asked the base leader if I could take you and Ash with me, but he said no. He said Ash shouldn't be moved right now and that it's good that you're watching over him." Professor Oak told him. "I agree. I trust that you won't let anything happen to Ash, am I right?"

Tracey nodded again, disappointed that the professor was going back to Kanto.

"Good. I'll keep in touch, okay?" Professor Oak promised. Tracey nodded one last time. Professor Oak left, leaving Tracey alone with Ash.

"I guess that's that." Tracey whispered. "Professor Oak's headed back to Pallet Town. It's okay though. He'll call us." Ash moaned in his sleep. Tracey smiled sadly. "I wish you would wake up. You're so vulnerable when you're asleep. That's okay too though. I won't let anything happen to you."

Suddenly, the base alarm went off.

"Lock down the infirmary!" A doctor shouted. "We can't let them get to the patients!"

"Can all rebel bases' infirmaries be locked down?" Tracey wondered out loud.

"Most of them!" Another doctor answered him, as he pressed the lock-down button.

Tracey watched as the infirmary was surrounded by metal. A pokemon's attack broke through, barely missing Ash and Tracey. The enemy climbed through the opening. Tracey immediately stepped in front of his friend as a Darkrai came through the opening as well.

"Out of our way." One of the enemies growled.

Tracey shook his head, staying between them and Ash. Ash started tossing and turning, having a horrible nightmare.

"Darkrai! You know what to do!" Another of the enemies cried.

Darkrai attacked, putting Tracey and Pikachu and many of the doctors into a horrible sleep as well.

Tracey dreamt he was in the gardens behind Professor Oak's lab. The pokemon were all having nightmares. Ash was there too; he was dead…

"NO!" Tracey cried, waking up on the floor of a dirty cell.

He was alone.


	10. Chapter 10

Tracey sat in his cell, silently looking for a way out. A woman came in and placed a plate of scraps of food in front of him. Tracey looked up at her. It was Cassidy from Team Rocket!

"I see you've gotten yourself into a little dilemma." Cassidy snickered. "Enjoy your supper."

Tracey just stared at the plate of scraps. He was hungry, but he didn't want to eat what they gave him. He had learned from his months of imprisonment that his captors could have done anything to his food.

Looking up again, he watched as Cassidy turned to leave.

"What happened to Bitch?" He asked, hoping that would aggravate her.

Cassidy spun around. "WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL HIM?" She screamed angrily.

Jumping up, a plan popped into Tracey's mind. "You heard me. Isn't his name Bitch?"

Cassidy reached out to strangle him. He dodged and ran out the door.

"Get back here! I'm not finished with you!" Cassidy screeched.

Tracey eventually outran her. He peeked into rooms as he went. He had to find Ash before something bad happened to him! Suddenly, he heard voices. He screeched to a stop and leaned against the wall.

"I think we should just kill him already!" One voice argued.

"Yeah! Why don't we?" Another voice agreed.

Tracey held his breath. They were talking about Ash!

"No." A more authoritative voice spoke softly. "The child interests me. If he is the one the prophecy speaks of, why is he so weak?"

Tracey nearly groaned. Not another prophecy about Ash!

"True. The boy is weak. Which is why we should kill him now! Before he recovers!" The first voice pointed out.

"Perhaps, but I think we should watch him for a little while first. That way, we can figure out why the prophets chose him and not another." The third voice murmured.

"The prophecy also mentions a pokemon watcher helping him out. We haven't been able to figure out who that is yet." The second voice reminded them.

This time, Tracey couldn't keep quiet. He knew they were talking about him and he gasped out loud.

In an instant, a man had pulled him into a type of lab. In one corner, Ash lay flat on an examination table. The rest of the room was filled with machines of every kind.

The man grinned at Tracey's terrified face. "You wouldn't happen to know who this pokemon watcher is, would you?"

Tracey shook his head vigorously. No way was he going to tell them that he was the pokemon watcher they were talking about!

"I guess we're just going to have to force it out of you!" Another of the three men smirked.

The third man pulled out a knife, walked over, and held it against Tracey's neck.

Then, he said one word. "Speak."

Tracey eyed the knife nervously and gulped. "I… I…"

"Now." The man commanded.

"I… I heard what you said… about… about… about the pokemon watcher…" Tracey stuttered.

"Go on." The man ordered.

"I… I know who he is…" Tracey stammered.

The man pushed the knife a little closer. "Tell us."

"I'm… I'm a pokemon… watcher…" Tracey forced the words out of his mouth.

The man pulled the knife away and patted Tracey on the head. "Good boy. Lock him up in a cell with tight security. The second toughest to escape from. I want them separate."

Tracey moaned softly. So much for the find Ash and escape plan. This was going to be difficult.

Soon, he was sitting in a new cell. His escape from Cassidy had meant nothing, except, of course, learning new information.

He pondered the new info for a while, wondering what it meant. A prophecy? Was that why they'd killed Ash's family? Because of some prophecy?

He sighed. He would have a long time to think about it. He wasn't getting out of there anytime soon.

**That night…**

"Hey! Kid! Wake up!" A hand shook Tracey roughly. He opened his eyes to see a man leaning over him. "The boss wants you."

Tracey's eyes widened. What could their boss want with him? Memories of earlier flooded his mind. Was he in trouble?

The man yanked him up, tied his hands together and shoved him out of the cell, down several hallways, and into a different lab.

"Attach the machine!" Another man ordered.

The man who had brought him pushed him into a chair and tied him to it, while some other men prepared what looked like a helmet with wires attached to it.

Grinning, they put it on Tracey's head and strapped it under his chin. Unable to do anything, Tracey started wondering if they had done this to Ash. Electric surges pushed through his head as he started thinking.

"Is it working, boss?" Someone asked.

"I can hear his thoughts loud and clear. He's thinking about his friend. Perfect." The man who had ordered them to attach the machine, obviously their boss, snickered.

'I can't think about Ash.' Tracey thought. 'I can't think about his adventures or the pokemon he's met or the stories he's told me or… Grrr. I need to stop thinking about what I can't think about. Focus on something else." With each thought, Tracey felt himself getting weaker. 'What's going on? Why do I feel so…' His thoughts stopped.

The last thing he heard was the enemy's boss yelling to the other men that they were supposed to have tested the thing first and the other men yelling that they hadn't had time.

**A year later…**

Tracey awoke to find himself in a moving vehicle. He looked around and saw Ash sleeping peacefully nearby. Feeling groggy, he crawled over to his friend.

"Ash?" He whispered. "Ash, please wake up. I need to tell you something."

The next thing he knew, his friend's arms were around his neck.

"Tracey! You're awake!" Ash cried. "I was so worried about you!"

Tracey was confused. "How long have I been asleep?"

"Over a year." Ash answered. Tracey's mouth dropped open. "I'm so mad about that stupid prophecy thing! It got everyone hurt and my whole family killed!"

"You know about the…" Tracey began.

"Anyway, we've been moving from place to place ever since we escaped. Those crooks haven't been able to find us because of it." Ash continued, ignoring him. "Professor Oak! Professor Oak, pull over!"

The vehicle, which Tracey now realized was a van, pulled over, and Professor Oak turned around from the driver's seat.

"What is it, Ash? Oh! Tracey! Thank goodness you're okay!" Professor Oak said. He climbed in back. "Well, I'm sure you'd like something to eat. Ash, can you grab one of those meal packs we got from Professor Rowan?"

Ash pulled something out of one of the boxes and handed it to Tracey, who quickly realized it was food. As he ate, Ash and Professor Oak explained that the three of them were badly wanted by the criminal government, but no one turned them in because they were their last hope. Everyone had heard about the prophecy by now.

"You and I are the ones who are really wanted, but Professor Oak got wanted because he's been helping hide us." Ash told him. "We're the ones who have to come up with a way to stop the criminals."

"What about all the rebels?" Tracey asked. "What happened to them?"

"Most of them got arrested or killed. The rest just gave up." Professor Oak answered. "All our friends are either dead or in jail."

Tracey's heart skipped a beat. "Dead?"

"Cilan and May." Ash started to cry. Professor Oak pulled him into a hug.

"It can't be." Tracey whispered.

Suddenly, the back door of the van was yanked wide open.

"Freeze!" A familiar voice screamed.

"Office Jenny?" Tracey gasped in disbelief.

"Um… Must've been looking in the wrong car! Carry on!" Officer Jenny said. She ran away, yelling to her fellow police that there was nothing to be found in the van.

Professor Oak chuckled. "See? I told you that everyone is on our side!" He closed the back door. "Let's hurry up and get out of here before someone gets suspicious."

Tracey and Ash sat in the back silently for a while.

Finally, Ash spoke up. "We failed to protect the legendary pokemon. Many of them have been captured."

"No way!" Tracey cried. "Is there anything else horrible that I missed?"

"Let's see… The legendary pokemon have caused floods and earthquakes and fires and all sorts of horrible disasters that have killed thousands of people and pokemon." Ash replied.

"We have to find some way to help them!" Tracey yelped.

Ash was quiet for a few moments. "I've befriended many legendary pokemon during my journeys. If I can somehow get close… perhaps I can free them…"

The two boys started brainstorming, searching their heads for a plan that would work. Getting Ash close would be hard, that was for sure.

**A few days later…**

"I'm not so sure I approve of this plan of yours." Professor Oak murmured.

"It's the only way to get close to the legendary pokemon that were captured." Tracey protested.

"But turning Ash in? That's not only crazy, but dangerous too." Professor Oak worried.

"I'll be fine, Professor Oak." Ash assured him. "I promise."

Professor Oak hesitated. "I hope you two know what you're doing, because if you don't come back alive…" He shivered. This was a stupid plan and it wouldn't work. They would both get caught, and then they'd be in trouble and he wouldn't be able to help them.

"Don't worry, Professor Oak." Tracey said. "We've got everything under control."

**A few hours later…**

Tracey fell to his knees and leaned, trembling, over his hurt friend. Everything had started according to plan. Tracey, in disguise, had led Ash, tied up, into enemy headquarters. They had smiled at him and complimented him on capturing the boy, but one man, pretending it was an accident, had ripped off Tracey's disguise, getting him recognized. Now, the two were helplessly trying to fight off twelve legendary pokemon at once _without_ their pokemon.

"Ash!" Tracey shook his friend. "Ash! You have to wake up!"

"Azelf!" One of the legendary pokemon they were fighting against cringed. "Azelf!"

'An Azelf?' Tracey remembered Ash once mentioning a special bond between him and an Azelf. 'This might just do it.'

"Azelf!" He yelled. "You have to help him! You two have a connection! You're meant to help each other in times of need!"

"Azelf!" Azelf seemed to be fighting something inside itself. "Azelf!" It, and all the other legendary pokemon in the room, released powerful attacks.

Tracey collapsed. He gritted his teeth. No! He wouldn't allow himself to be knocked out until he succeeded!

"Azelf…" He choked. "Please…"

One of the pokemon used a powerful attack. As Tracey's eyes closed, he saw a red and black light burst out of Azelf's body. It had broken free!

"Azelf!" Azelf hurried over to Ash and Tracey and healed them. Then, it dropped into Ash's arms.

"Good job, Azelf." Ash whispered. He turned to face the angered pokemon.

Facing them now were Zaptos, Articuno, Moltres, Entei, Raikou, Suicune, Latias, Ho-oh, Lugia, Mesprite, and Uxie. Even with Azelf on his side, Ash was terrified.

Gulping, he shouted. "Azelf! Use Extrasensory!"

Azelf obeyed, and the attack caused all the other pokemon to back up a few steps.

'They didn't do anything wrong.' Ash couldn't stop his thoughts. He stepped forward. 'Maybe there's another way.'

"Please! Don't you remember me? I've met almost all of you!" He cried.

"Ash! What are you doing?" Tracey yelped.

Pulling together all his memories, Ash managed to free each pokemon, one by one.

Suddenly, right after he freed the last one, Ash passed out. Tracey caught him and saw a poison dart in his neck.

"No!" He yelled. "Ash! Please, no!" The Latias grabbed him and pulled him away from Ash as the rest of the pokemon gathered around the unconscious boy.

Tracey noticed Ash's body start to glow.

'They're healing him!' He realized. 'Now that they're free of the enemy's control, they realize he's their friend!'

The enemy's boss came marching in.

"What's going on here?" He screeched.

The legendary pokemon turned and were immediately aggravated. They attacked the evil man.

Ash sat up, but couldn't bear to watch the scene in front of him.

It turned out gory. The enemy's boss… was dead.

**An hour later…**

Ash and Tracey watched the land far below them pass by as they rode on Ho-oh's back. In another situation, they'd be thrilled, but they, and the legendary pokemon around and below them, were being followed by helicopters.

It had been a narrow escape from enemy headquarters, seeing how angry the criminals had been when they'd found out their boss was dead, but they'd managed it. Now, it was just a matter of speed and stamina.

"They're catching up!" Tracey shouted, glancing back at the choppers. "Hurry!"

The pokemon sped up, trying to outfly the crafts that were pursuing them. Ash and Tracey held on tight.

The pokemon were starting to get tired, but the helicopters could go forever without getting worn out. Latias was the first to drop.

"Latias! No!" Ash cried as Latias was caught in a net. One by one the legendary pokemon were recaptured until Ho-oh was the only one left. Suddenly, it teleported. Ash and Tracey hadn't known it could do that. There were no legends about Ho-oh teleporting!

Ash and Tracey found themselves in the gardens behind Professor Oak's lab.

"A… a _Ho-oh_?" Gary, who had been taking care of the pokemon, gasped. "But _how_? And what's it doing _here_?"

Ash and Tracey quickly hid. Gary saw them out of the corner of his eye.

"You have to admit that I deserve some explanation, you two!" He yelled at them. Ho-oh took off.

Ash slowly crept out of his hiding place, although Tracey was shaking his head no.

"_Ash_? No! It's not safe for you here!" Gary gasped again. "That must mean Tracey's with you. Get out of here! Quickly! They're all over Pallet Town!"

"What about you?" Ash asked softly.

"I'll be fine! Just worry about yourself and Tracey!" Gary shouted.

"No! You're coming with us!" Ash replied.

Seconds later, an explosion sounded not far from them.

"That was in town!" Tracey cried.

"Let's go!" Ash put in.

"You can't go there! There are criminals everywhere!" Gary yelled at them.

Another explosion sounded.

"But we can't just stay here and do nothing!" Ash screamed back, already on his way there.

"That's what they want! They're setting off those explosives to lure you in! They know you're here!" Gary hollered.

Ash ignored him. "Tracey, are you coming?"

"Sorry, Gary. Those people need us." Tracey responded, holding up Marill's pokeball. He ran to catch up with Ash.

"Don't you understand it's a trap?" Gary called after them, his words having no effect whatsoever.

They understood, but they didn't care.


	11. Chapter 11

Ash and Tracey raced into town. There were fires everywhere. Tracey called out Marill and Ash called out Oshowatt.

It was a hard fight, but they managed to subdue most of the fires.

Suddenly, Ash was grabbed from behind. "Tracey!"

Tracey rushed towards his friend, dodging other criminals that were trying to grab him.

Ho-oh got there first and used its beak to separate the criminal from Ash.

Soon, the three were on the run again.

"We need to get the other legendries back and go in for the kill or we'll never win." Ash said once they were far away from Pallet Town.

"I have to agree." Tracey said. "But how are we going to get them back?"

Ho-oh screeched as a way of saying it would help.

"Really, Ho-oh?" Ash asked, getting a nod as a response. "Great, we're going to need to come up with a plan first and find out where they're hidden."

The two boys spent a couple hours talking tactics. A lot of their plan would have to rely on chance, but they could still do it.

Finally, it was decided that they would get in through the roof and travel through the vents.

A trusted source (Officer Jenny) had told them that the legendries were being held in a top-security base in hopes of catching them red-handed when they tried to free them.

Ho-oh teleported onto the roof and Tracey and Ash got off.

Ash quickly located an entrance and cracked it open.

"There are guards down there." He whispered. "And more are gathering. Do you think they know our plan?"

"Shh." Tracey said. "Listen."

Both boys fell silent.

"Those boys were seen with Ho-oh somewhere in Pallet Town, but our troops failed to capture them and they got away." A guard growled. "They'll be coming here next. Be on high guard. We can't let them near the legendries."

"They're not going to be stupid enough to go through the hallways. How do you think they'll try to get close?" Another guard asked.

"I don't know." The first guard replied.

Ash and Tracey exchanged glances.

'They know.' Ash mouthed. He closed the trap door and looked around for another way in.

There was a door on the other side of the roof.

The two ran for it and Tracey was the one to open it a little this time.

"All clear." He whispered and opened it wider. He crept down the stairs and opened the door down there a crack. It was still all clear and there were some air vents right above his head. He motioned to Ash, stepped out and climbed into the vents. Ash followed his example and then handed him a flashlight.

Guards passed under them shortly after the vent cover was closed.

Ash pointed forward and they started crawling, being as quiet as possible.

Suddenly, a vent cover opened in front of them. Both boys froze.

"There's some kind of light in there! I can't see because of it!" A guard called to his colleagues.

"Use this!" Another guard called back.

The first guard rolled a sphere in the direction of Ash and Tracey and then disappeared and shut the vent cover.

Tranquilizer poured out of the sphere.

The flashlight fell out of Tracey's hand as the gas took its toll on both boys and they both fell unconscious.

**Later…**

Tracey opened his eyes drowsily.

The first thing that registered with him was that he was in a cell. The second: Ash was not there.

He bolted upright and immediately regretted it because he felt nauseous.

The door to his cell opened. A criminal stood in the doorway with a gun.

Tracey's eyes widened and he got out of the way just as the bullet hit the wall behind where he'd just been sitting. He dodged some more before getting behind the criminal and hitting some weak spots to knock him out.

He was almost out the door when an idea popped into his mind.

This just might work.

**Meanwhile…**

Ash dodged a few more shots. A group of guards were trying to kill him.

"Stop." A guard with a deep voice ordered. "The boss said that he changed his mind. He wants the boy killed by the legendary pokemon."

"But… do you remember what happened last time we tried to kill him with the legendries?" A guard questioned. "This could end up like that."

"Are you questioning the boss's orders?" The guard with the deep voice asked.

"No! Of course not!" The guard who'd raised the question responded. "We'll take him there right away!"

Realizing this was his only chance to get to the legendary pokemon, Ash let them grab him and drag him down the halls.

"What's going on here?" A finely dressed man snapped. "I told you to kill him."

"But… _he_ told us you'd changed your mind and…" A guard began, pointing.

Ash noticed the man with the deep voice backing up out of the corner of his eye.

"Where do you think you're going, traitor?" The finely dressed man growled to the man with the deep voice, pulling out a gun.

Ash watched the fight with fascination. He didn't notice that the guards holding him had let go and fled the scene.

"Ash! Catch!" Tracey's voice came from the man fighting the finely dressed man. Ash realized the man with the deep voice was actually Tracey dressed in a guard's uniform and Tracey was tossing him a gun.

Ash's eyes widened as he held the gun in his hands. Tracey didn't actually expect him to use it, did he?

"Ash! Find the pokemon! Hurry!" Tracey yelled.

"What about you?" Ash replied.

"I'll be fine! Just go!" Tracey shouted at him.

Ash flinched and then spun around and ran. The gun thumped against his leg as he searched for the legendary pokemon. Corner after corner, hallway after hallway, they had to be somewhere.

Finally, he heard a noise.

"Azelf! Azelf!" It was Azelf, calling to him!

Ash followed the sound towards the legendary pokemon, hooking the gun to his belt.

Opening the door, they all attacked.

Ash muffled his own scream.

The legendary pokemon, realizing they'd just attacked a friend, healed him and helped him up.

Ash smiled. "Come on. Let's get out of here." He vaguely remembered Tracey, but told himself he'd come back for him later.

They pounded past the guards and made their escape.

**Meanwhile…**

Tracey ran as fast as he could through the woods. Hopefully, Ash had made it out safely as well.

He heard a noise in the air and hid. Choppers were spreading out to search the area surrounding the base. From the bushes, he saw guards march past his hiding spot. They stopped and Tracey matched his breathing to theirs.

"They've evaded us for over a year. What makes you think we can find them now?" One asked.

"They have the legendary pokemon with them. The legendary pokemon are kind of hard to miss." Another answered.

"But only one of them is with the legendries. The other won't be easily found." A third pointed out.

"They'll meet up eventually. We'll snag them then." The second replied.

A hand grabbed Tracey's shirt and yanked him out of his hiding spot.

"No need." The owner of the hand said. "One down, one to go."

"What do we do with him? Kill him?" The owner of the first voice questioned.

"No." The owner of the second voice said. "The other boy will come back for him, so we'll keep him as bait. However, he'll be under high security at all times. There'll be no escape for you, boy."

Tracey gulped. How would he get out of this one?

He heard a screech high above him, getting closer by the second.

Suddenly, Ho-oh's beak ripped through the chest of the guard holding Tracey. The guard gasped and then went limp.

Tracey's eyes widened. Ho-oh grabbed him and flipped him onto its back and they were off.

Tracey was still shocked by what had just happened. How could Ho-oh have done such a thing?

'This is war.' He reminded himself. 'I can't waste time pitying the other side.'

They flew on.


End file.
